Okay, so maybe the title is a little dramatic, but with less than a month left I feel like counting down the days is all I can think about. This semester has truly been a blur. Since I stepped foot in Spain in January, I knew that the semester would go by quickly. January and February sort of crept by at normal speed, but once it hit March I feel like the time escaped me. You could tell me that it was March right now and I would probably believe you (other than the fact it was 104 degrees here today). But it isn't March, it is May 9th. And I leave this beautiful city on June 4th.
I feel like I have accomplished what I set out to do. I have wanted to study abroad since I even knew that it existed, and it is odd to me to think that my time here is almost over. Ever since starting college I have planned which classes to take around my semester abroad. All of my friends had heard a million times that "I'll be abroad spring semester of junior year." And now it has come...and it has almost passed. Of course there are things that I am looking forward to returning to. On the top of that list are probably food items to be honest; Spain just can't do Tex Mex or milkshakes quite like America. However, there are so many things that I am leaving behind here that I have no guarantee of returning to.
I think that study abroad is beneficial for many reasons, but of all the lessons that it has taught me, I think that letting go is one of the biggest. I had to let go of my comfort zone when I boarded a plane on January 10th, and I will be letting go of the best semester of my life on June 4th. I know that the future holds great things for me, and returning to Chapel Hill for my senior year is one of them, but it is hard to let go when I don't know that I'll ever have the same experience again. Sure, I'll return to Europe someday. But will I return to the carefree lifestyle that I have here now? Will I ever feel at home here and not just like every other tourist?
I am so grateful to have had the chance to live in Spain for this semester. It has been a whirlwind of new friends, new food, and new experiences. Never have I lived in a place where it is acceptable (and expected) to drink a beer during the week at lunch. I can truly say that I have integrated into another culture, and that is the best lesson that studying abroad could have given me. Being able to appreciate other cultures has always been important to me, and I feel that opening your mind to how the rest of the world lives can give you a perspective on life that is otherwise unattainable. I won't say that study abroad changed me, but I think that it helped me grow from where I already was.
On June 4th I will return home and finish what I started. I will finish the application to medical school and take the MCAT. I will go back to Chapel Hill and take my classes and go back to my life and my friends there. I will come home and get to see my wonderful family and spend time alongside of them. But I will also be closing this chapter of my life. I will be saying goodbye to 5 people that have become my second family. I will return to being the youngest child, and having the ability to sleep without hearing children screaming. I will go back to sleeping alone, without having Maggie a foot away at every second of the day. I will have to say goodbye to a beautiful country that has opened its arms to me and given me the best 5 months of my life. But most of all, I will have to face the fact that I can no longer anticipate "my semester abroad" and that it is over. For now, I'm going to soak up the Sevilla sun and spend my last month here enjoying what is left.
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