Several of our friends/family members have asked what our plans are for the next few months. The answer is to that question is: "We aren't entirely sure".
For the foreseeable future, Emily and the boys will be staying with her parents in Pleasant Grove, Utah. When Em's arm is back to normal, she will probably travel a bit to visit family members in other states. For the duration of the evacuation, Jay will be living in Abidjan and making short visits to the States every 6-8 weeks. If the State Department decides to close the Embassy in Abidjan, then Jay will end up in DC and the rest of us would join him there.
The U.S. Embassy in Abidjan is still functioning with the help of local employees, but only essential U.S. personnel remain at post. Since his job is necessary for the running of the Embassy, Jay returned to Abidjan last week. The current plan is that he and two of his employees will rotate in and out of the country. That way, two information management specialists will be at post all the time, but each of them will get a chance to have a break from the tension. When an Embassy issues an ordered departure, the State Department re-evaluates the situation at the post on a monthly basis to determine if it is safe for families to return. If after 6 months, the situation remains unsafe, then the post becomes an "unaccompanied post".
We hope the situation won't reach that point. Even though our time in Abidjan was brief, we really enjoyed living there and hope that our entire family will be able to return home soon.
1 comment:
This is so interesting to read from your perspective...an insider. I am glad you are all okay. Keep the posts coming!
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