I feel like I leave a lot. I left my American preschool friends (who I don’t remember), I left my childhood friends in Taiwan (who I do remember), [insert a break with minimal leaving], I left my first set of roommates at DePaul, I left my second set of roommates and all DePaul folks, I left my roommate at U of I, I just left my second set of roommates at U of I, I left the Asian American Cultural Center (where I work). With so much practice you would think I would be better at goodbyes, but I’m not.
Sometimes I ask myself, why am I choosing to leave again? For those of you who know me well, I like to plan and I like doing the expected. For having such a personality, I have made a lot of changes in the past few years. The longest consecutive time where I will have lived with the same roommate is only 2 semesters, and the longest consecutive time I will have attended the same university is 3 semesters (3 and a half counting summer session). Not only is it difficult to leave people, it is difficult to leave consistency and comfort. Perhaps this is the one part of the college experience that I wish I had, a consistency and a significant amount of time spent with the same group of people. Even so, I know all of the goodbyes have been important and necessary. Without them I would not be where I am right now and I would not have met all of the wonderful people that I know now.
Study abroad will be amazing and challenging. I have already said many goodbyes, and there's more to come. However, this time is different than the times before. I plan on coming back. I know things will be different and people will have changed, including myself, but it's okay. I know that I won't regret going abroad for a semester just as I haven't regretted making the changes. There's a lot to look forward to, but I always remember to look back to see how I got here. A note to everyone I have left: you have all been an important part of the process, I miss you and thank you for being supportive :)
17 days!
