4. Hugs, high-fives and thumb flicks – when language or voice threatens to keep you from connecting with children, watch out for these guys! The first two were familiar, but the “thumb flick” is something I’ve learned in Malaysia and plan to bring back to the States! The younger kids tend to favor the hugs, but one of my favorite older girls (oh come on, we all have favorites!), Jacquelyn, is always waiting to give me a hug on the porch when I get home while she waits for her ride. God knows the power a hug holds. It doesn’t matter what kind of day I’ve had, Jacquelyn hugs fill the world with unicorns and rainbows.

I met this cutie at a wedding in a "kampung" or village outside KK. We couldn't speak with each other, but found other ways to communicate and become friends. 

5. Orion – my cousin in Texas first taught me how to spot “the belt” and it has since provided a place of solace for me throughout the world. Honestly, it’s silly but gazing at the constellation totally makes me think of the mice singing in American Tale. “Somewhere out there,” another is eyeing the same image, gawking in awe and submission. I’ve seen Orion from many places throughout my life and even talked with people on the phone, connected on some level with this common simultaneous sight. Stars have always amazed me, but there’s something beautiful in the continuity of seeing the same light gazing down on you from so many different perspectives.