Goodbye For Now

As of today I have lived in Germany for eleven months. And as of today I have just 3 days left in Germany. This year has gone by so incredibly fast. The last month I have been waking up and realizing how little time I have left.

I have said way too many good byes recently. The thought of possibly not seeing my best friends again breaks my heart. For a few of them, I know that it is not goodbye forever. Exchange made me realize how small the world is, and how gigantic it is that the same time.

This last week has gone by so slow and so fast. Part of me is so excited to see my family, and friends from Grand Marais again. To be able to drive, see my dogs, go to work, eat nachos again, for that I am really excited. But to leave here? To leave my new home and family and friends? It's really terrible.

I am so incredibly glad I went on this exchange! Countless times through this year I have personally thanked myself for getting my but out of the USA and experience the world. They say that people change a LOT on exchange, and that when they return to their home countries they are very different. I was always wondering when I would notice myself changing. I could never really tell throughout the year, but now when I think about myself last summer... I think I have changed way, way more than I realise.

It seems a little ridiculous, but I am one hundred times more nervous to return to my home town, than I ever was for going to Germany, right from the beginning.