Friday, August 26, 2011

Peace Out USA

I have spent the past week at the University of Chicago, where I did my orientation for this program just a few blocks away at the Lutheran School of Theology. It was an incredible week where I was able to get to know and build relationships with many amazing people. Saying goodbye to my follow YAGMs was hard, but I can’t wait to hear about the experiences and stories that they will create in their placement site over the next year.
This week has been a lot of fun, especially getting to go to a Cubs game and seeing Navy Pier. Also, this week has allowed me a chance to think about the things that I will experience over this next year. I keep telling myself that a year really isn’t that long, but then again so much can happen in a year. I can’t wait to finally be in Bookham, United Kingdom and start forming relationships there, but it is hard to know that I am leaving relationships behind in the United States. Having such close relationships with my family and friends has made this a difficult decision to leave them all for a year. I find myself wondering what I will be missing out on while I am gone, but then I remind myself of the great things that I will get to do during this year.
 As I have taken some time to think about this upcoming year, I find myself thinking a lot about how things will be when I return to the United States. Will I come back a changed person? This is a major reoccurring question that I have. As I think about it now, I am confident in saying that I will come back a changed person; however I am unsure of the amount of change that will take place.
What will my relationships be like with my family and friends when I return home? This is a question that also repeatedly runs through my mind. I will not know the answer to this until I return home in a year, but I do know that it will be a question that will continue to be in the back of my mind throughout the year.
The time is finally here! I have been waiting for this day since I found out I was accepted into the Young Adults and Global Missions program. I am very excited to begin this new adventure, but also very scared and nervous at the same time. I feel more prepared than ever to take off on this journey and adventure into the unknown.