It's amazing how easy it is to adapt to new places. I've talked to other people, so I know it's not just me, but I feel like I'm in a constant state of change at this point in my life. After 4 months at APU freshman year, it was another month at home and 4 months at APU again. Then it was 3 months at home, 4 at APU, one at home, and now 3 and a half in South Africa. And each and every place is one that I would consider my home. When I lived in room 126 in Trinity, I was at home. When I lived in the house I grew up in, I was at home. When I lived in K8, I was at home. Now, living in room 7C at African Enterprise in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, I'm at home.
This isn't to take anything away from any of the places I've lived or the people I've lived with. I don't devalue the house I live in when I'm at Phoenix because I lived in K court for a semester. I just become accustomed to places so easily, and I can call them home. And I've reached that point with AE.
I've been here for over 10 weeks now. I arrived on a Friday, went through 6 weeks of intensive classes, 4 weeks of working 8 hours a day at a service site, and a week to relax and spend time in a traditional Zulu homestead and on a safari. Tomorrow will be 11 weeks at this campus. And tomorrow will be the last full day on this campus.
With all this moving around, I've become great at assimilating. I don't feel lost in the first couple of days of getting to know a location, and I can pick it up right away. I feel at home after no time at all. One week into the time here felt like we had been here forever, but the next 10 weeks just flew by. It's remarkable how I became so comfortable so quickly, and that time is already gone. One of the things I haven't gotten used to is saying goodbye. It hasn't even been 3 months, and I've already grown so attached to this place. I'm not an outwardly emotional person, and I realize how ridiculous it is to feel sadness at leaving a location, but I do. I'm going to miss this place so much.
I've gone through so much here, and I've learned so much. I've grown in relationships, learned about myself, and seen things I had never seen before. I processed time from my service site, learned more about people around me, and played so many games of soccer. So many games of soccer. And I'm going to miss the hell out of this place that I will always associate with these experiences.
Side note: People have had weddings here at AE. When we tell people in the Maritzburg area that we're staying at AE and we're students who are studying abroad, they are surprised. AE is a beautiful place, and we have been so blessed to stay here for the semester.
But I'm going to miss this place. When I think of South Africa, I'm not going to think of a safari, or Cape Town, or bungy jumping or anything like that. I'm going to think back to service sites and AE and the fun times I had with my friends. And leaving this is closing a chapter of my life that I'll never get to reopen again.
I've grown attached to how I live my life here, and I love it. I wish I could live my life here for a while because I know that my time in South Africa is coming to a close. I'm now closing the chapter of my life that is the best part of my time in South Africa, and this is a big deal. I've been looking forward to this semester for 2 years, since before I ever got to APU, and now it's ending. There's still plenty of time, and plenty of fun things to do, but after we leave tomorrow I don't know if I'll ever be back in Pietermaritzburg. Ever again. Ever is a long time, and I really hope I get the opportunity to return, but I don't know. I can't predict the future and I don't currently have any plans for my return. Ever. Ever is a long time, and I hope I can return to see some of the people I've met, but tomorrow will be a day for goodbyes. And I don't do well with goodbyes.
So now I'm done. Another 3 month chunk of my life is complete, so I'm off to start another one month chunk. So I can start a 3 month chunk. So I can live in another 1 month chunk followed by a 4 monther. This is the way I live my life. But what can you do? I know that for those chunks, I'll be spending time with people I love. And it's surprising how much time there really is in a month. So I won't look at this situation as "only one month before change." I'll look at it as "a great travel week and 3 more weeks growing with the people I've been growing with this whole semester." Besides, I've grown comfortable here. Not that comfort is a bad thing at all, but comfort always affects me negatively. Maybe someday I'll be comfortable and it will be a good thing, but despite my aversion to change, it's necessary. I need to start over in a place that I'm not in right now to correct some of the bad habits I've picked up lately.
So it's now time. Leaving another place I've come to know as home and transplanting myself to a new place in a new city in a country I still am new to and don't fully understand.
So it goes.
This isn't to take anything away from any of the places I've lived or the people I've lived with. I don't devalue the house I live in when I'm at Phoenix because I lived in K court for a semester. I just become accustomed to places so easily, and I can call them home. And I've reached that point with AE.
I've been here for over 10 weeks now. I arrived on a Friday, went through 6 weeks of intensive classes, 4 weeks of working 8 hours a day at a service site, and a week to relax and spend time in a traditional Zulu homestead and on a safari. Tomorrow will be 11 weeks at this campus. And tomorrow will be the last full day on this campus.
With all this moving around, I've become great at assimilating. I don't feel lost in the first couple of days of getting to know a location, and I can pick it up right away. I feel at home after no time at all. One week into the time here felt like we had been here forever, but the next 10 weeks just flew by. It's remarkable how I became so comfortable so quickly, and that time is already gone. One of the things I haven't gotten used to is saying goodbye. It hasn't even been 3 months, and I've already grown so attached to this place. I'm not an outwardly emotional person, and I realize how ridiculous it is to feel sadness at leaving a location, but I do. I'm going to miss this place so much.
I've gone through so much here, and I've learned so much. I've grown in relationships, learned about myself, and seen things I had never seen before. I processed time from my service site, learned more about people around me, and played so many games of soccer. So many games of soccer. And I'm going to miss the hell out of this place that I will always associate with these experiences.
Side note: People have had weddings here at AE. When we tell people in the Maritzburg area that we're staying at AE and we're students who are studying abroad, they are surprised. AE is a beautiful place, and we have been so blessed to stay here for the semester.
But I'm going to miss this place. When I think of South Africa, I'm not going to think of a safari, or Cape Town, or bungy jumping or anything like that. I'm going to think back to service sites and AE and the fun times I had with my friends. And leaving this is closing a chapter of my life that I'll never get to reopen again.
I've grown attached to how I live my life here, and I love it. I wish I could live my life here for a while because I know that my time in South Africa is coming to a close. I'm now closing the chapter of my life that is the best part of my time in South Africa, and this is a big deal. I've been looking forward to this semester for 2 years, since before I ever got to APU, and now it's ending. There's still plenty of time, and plenty of fun things to do, but after we leave tomorrow I don't know if I'll ever be back in Pietermaritzburg. Ever again. Ever is a long time, and I really hope I get the opportunity to return, but I don't know. I can't predict the future and I don't currently have any plans for my return. Ever. Ever is a long time, and I hope I can return to see some of the people I've met, but tomorrow will be a day for goodbyes. And I don't do well with goodbyes.
So now I'm done. Another 3 month chunk of my life is complete, so I'm off to start another one month chunk. So I can start a 3 month chunk. So I can live in another 1 month chunk followed by a 4 monther. This is the way I live my life. But what can you do? I know that for those chunks, I'll be spending time with people I love. And it's surprising how much time there really is in a month. So I won't look at this situation as "only one month before change." I'll look at it as "a great travel week and 3 more weeks growing with the people I've been growing with this whole semester." Besides, I've grown comfortable here. Not that comfort is a bad thing at all, but comfort always affects me negatively. Maybe someday I'll be comfortable and it will be a good thing, but despite my aversion to change, it's necessary. I need to start over in a place that I'm not in right now to correct some of the bad habits I've picked up lately.
So it's now time. Leaving another place I've come to know as home and transplanting myself to a new place in a new city in a country I still am new to and don't fully understand.
So it goes.
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