Holding Down the Fort

Last Friday my host mom spent 30 hours on airplanes and spent a few hours in 5 different countries (Paraguay, Brasil, USA, Japan, Taiwan) on her way to a 3 week conference in Taiwan for her work. Since my host family consists of my mom and I, the logical question is ¨Where does that leave Allison?¨ And the answer is that I am holding down the fort at home, living more or less on my own. Since our cozy house sits beside that of my aunt, all inside one large protective metal fence, I can easily go and ask her for anything should any situation arise. Originally when my mom told me that she would be traveling for nearly a month, I was a little worried about being all alone for so long, not to mention pretty bummed about not seeing her for so long. Over the last couple months we´ve gotten pretty close, spending lots of time in deep discussion and laughing our heads off. I´ve gotten used to having her around and now she´s....not. :(
However I must admit that I had a surprise waiting for me when I thought I would be spending a lot of alone time. Our body guard (due to the dangerous nature of my mom´s work prosecuting drug dealers) was put in charge of taking me to and from school as well as to social gatherings that may come up. Between him and my aunts, I´ve barely found a single alone moment since my mom left. Everyone is always asking me what I´m doing, what I´m going to do, and what I´m going to eat. All the attention makes me feel loved, but what they don´t realize is that even when my host mom is here, she is working quite a bit and I do, after all, know how to fend for myself. I´m also surprised how quickly my days here fill up with things to do. Maybe it´s inevitable, busyness hunts me down no matter what continent or language I´m in.