I'm sitting in the London Heathrow airport right now and thinking about all that has passed since the last time that I was here, almost exactly 5 months prior to this very moment. I remember sitting in this same spot then because I had found free internet and I remember thinking about taking that first plunge into France. Alot has changed since then. First of all I have made leaps and bounds in my ability to speak and comprehend French. While my lack of vocabulary still holds me back, my comprehension of the spoken word has become quite good. On the plane from London to Lyon back in August, I remember being so nervous and hearing French spoken all around me I was just hoping that no one would talk to me. Now its hard for me not to speak in French even though this is Great Britain.
The other night I had a "last supper" of sorts with nearly 40 other exchange students. Some were leaving, some were staying, but in the spirit of solidarity we wanted to let those who were departing end their time in a unified fashion. Traditional Savoyard food was shared by all and they even got me to play my guitar for them. It was a great way to bookend the semester. Afterwards I started thinking more in-depth about the return home. This whole time I have been so excited for it, so ready (or so I thought), and so content to return. But I realized that its not going to be that easy for me to return to America. I will most likely experience an even greater level of culture shock than I did when I entered France. The more I take time to think about the differences in the pace of life that I have lived here and the one to which I return in America, the more I realize that I will literally be "hitting the ground running". Part of me wants to worry about my friends and our relationships. Will they be the same? Will they care about my life and the incredibly intensive experience I have just undertaken and completed? Will I be a different person?...on and on. I realize that these thoughts are only common and that maybe I am worrying a little more than I should. But at the same time they are all valid worries and I am interested to see how they will play out and how my questions will be answered.
Nonetheless I am ready to return. It is sad to leave behind what has become your life for the last five months. Somehow I greatly underestimated the power of this experience. I thought that I would be so ready to come home that saying goodbye would be easy but in reality it is anything but. I have made some great friends here, I have experienced that shattering of cultural misconceptions and false stereotypes of the French who have been open and kind to me so often. My best friends here have been German and they are some of the kindest and sincere people I have ever met, I will miss them greatly. I have been blessed countless times by the people and have been carried in the hand of God who has guided my steps and blazed my trail. I could go on and on. But home and family calls me. I miss all of them and it will be fun to get to hang out with them all. I will be seeing a blazers game with Judah, making meals with Ashley, hanging out with my parents and speaking French to my Mom. I finally get to see Connor and hang out with him, God knows it has been way too long. Then the best part comes on the 28th and in February I will see the Winter Olympics. Life will go on and this experience will move into the past. But I will never forget it. It has changed me in the best way possible and I am so blessed and thankful for it.
And for all of you who prayed for me and asked about me and who have been reading this I would like to say a big thank you as well. God bless you for your curiosity and concern about my life, you are all blessings.
Well I am currently waiting on a 9 hour flight across the Atlantic, followed by a 3 hour wait in Philadelphia, a 5 hour flight to Salt Lake City, a one hour wait there, and lastly a 2 hour flight into PDX. It will be a long day but that's the way these things begin and end. When I finally made it to Lyon in August I was literally shaking with fatigue, now I will still be tired but if I will be relieved to be home.
So this is the last post in what has been a blog full of great memories and great experiences. If you enjoyed reading this blog even a fraction of how much I enjoyed living it out then you have some idea of the joy I have experienced over here. Until next time..à la prochaine.
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