The Final Countdown
Alright, folks, I know I've been MIA all summer, but I'm back in time to tell you that there are only 2 weeks left before I leave for Florence! Exciting!!
I'm working on getting the last few loose ends tied before I'm out the door and, oh boy, let me tell you that there is A LOT to do. I'm finally done with buying clothes that are suitable for the cooler climate (I am so excited to finally have a use for my scarf collection), but my packing list is still being drafted. My visa is safely nestled in my passport and my rail pass arrived last week, but I'm not too sure when/how/where I'm going to use them. I have basically memorized all the guidebooks by now, but I still don't feel completely prepared for the next few months.
But, that's sort of the lesson in all of this planning; no matter how much I plan (which, a lot), I will never be prepared for the moment I step foot on the plane leaving home, or for the moment I step foot in Florence (and Paris, and Amsterdam, and Brussels, and who knows where else?). That's all for the best, though. I don't want those moments to be boring and predictable. After all, why would I be doing this semester abroad if I could learn everything that I need to know from a couple of guidebooks, a few bloggers, and some fiction (still looking at you, Anne Rice)?
The next few months are going to frustrate the planner within me to no end, there is no doubt about that. But that frustration is good. Growth is only possible through struggle, so I'm going to embrace that struggle with open arms. It will be hard, I will have bad days, but I'm going to gaining so much XP and leveling so fast that it will be sooooo worth it.
Of course, none of this is to say that I'm not afraid, because, let me tell you, I am slightly petrified. Excited, sure, so excited beyond comprehension, but I'm also afraid. I'm standing at the precipice of what is essentially a pitch black trail. I can't see the road before I me, I don't know where the path will take me, and I have no inkling of how to chart the course. All I can do is keep walking and have faith that I am walking towards something amazing. And I do have faith. I know that everything ahead of me is going to be amazing and life changing, but it's natural instinct to be afraid of the dark.
So, now, two weeks until I leave, all I can really do is prepare as much as I can and understand that, despite the months of time spent planning, I will still be walking down that unknown path, on the way to something wonderful.
I'm working on getting the last few loose ends tied before I'm out the door and, oh boy, let me tell you that there is A LOT to do. I'm finally done with buying clothes that are suitable for the cooler climate (I am so excited to finally have a use for my scarf collection), but my packing list is still being drafted. My visa is safely nestled in my passport and my rail pass arrived last week, but I'm not too sure when/how/where I'm going to use them. I have basically memorized all the guidebooks by now, but I still don't feel completely prepared for the next few months.
But, that's sort of the lesson in all of this planning; no matter how much I plan (which, a lot), I will never be prepared for the moment I step foot on the plane leaving home, or for the moment I step foot in Florence (and Paris, and Amsterdam, and Brussels, and who knows where else?). That's all for the best, though. I don't want those moments to be boring and predictable. After all, why would I be doing this semester abroad if I could learn everything that I need to know from a couple of guidebooks, a few bloggers, and some fiction (still looking at you, Anne Rice)?
The next few months are going to frustrate the planner within me to no end, there is no doubt about that. But that frustration is good. Growth is only possible through struggle, so I'm going to embrace that struggle with open arms. It will be hard, I will have bad days, but I'm going to gaining so much XP and leveling so fast that it will be sooooo worth it.
Of course, none of this is to say that I'm not afraid, because, let me tell you, I am slightly petrified. Excited, sure, so excited beyond comprehension, but I'm also afraid. I'm standing at the precipice of what is essentially a pitch black trail. I can't see the road before I me, I don't know where the path will take me, and I have no inkling of how to chart the course. All I can do is keep walking and have faith that I am walking towards something amazing. And I do have faith. I know that everything ahead of me is going to be amazing and life changing, but it's natural instinct to be afraid of the dark.
So, now, two weeks until I leave, all I can really do is prepare as much as I can and understand that, despite the months of time spent planning, I will still be walking down that unknown path, on the way to something wonderful.
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