I'd better make it count...
Trip Start
Aug 31, 2008
1
19
30
Trip End
Dec 08, 2008
Vienna,
Vienna,
Austria
Thursday, October 30, 2008
"While you're sitting around thinking about what you can't change
and worrying about all the wrong things
time's flying by moving so fast
you better make it count cause you can't get it back. "
This semester was something I worked hard for all summer and continually looked forward to. I kept counting down the number of days of work that I had left and couldn't wait to get back to college and go to EUROPE! I seemed to have wished away the summer...
Then came Oklahoma orientation. That week was so hard. All the sudden it hit me that most of what I am familiar with was about to be taken out of my life for the next 100 days. I was still excited about the things I was going to be seeing in Europe, but I was just feeling overwhelmed with emotions of excitement mixed with nervousness and doubt that I would do well in a situation like this.
We got to London, and the excitement overpowered the other feelings. We were so busy seeing all the sites and adjusting to life in a different country. That week came to an end, and we flew to Vienna. After settling into my bedroom in the castle, I laid in bed that first night here thinking about the length of time ahead of me. Those nervous feelings came back and I again started the cycle of thinking about how many days until I would get to go home and return back to the Rochester College campus I am use to. Again..wishing time away.
Throughout September, we spent all of our time in Austria and I enjoyed it and had fun when I was out doing things around Vienna during the day. But at night, that cloud of worry would appear back over my head and I would just start looking forward to December 8th, the day I fly home. I would worry about all the things I had to get done, and just the stress of being away from everything would get to me. This first week, I had this feeling that I had been stripped of so much of what makes up the person I am: my family, my friends, my culture, my language, my church. All that seemed to be left was the "raw" version of myself..me without all of the other parts that my life is typically composed of. It was hard to see this. I started feeling like I was nothing without all of those things. I seemed to be sitting around thinking about what I can't change and worrying about all the wrong things.
Now October has somehow come to an end and I'm realizing that I have only about 5 weeks until I come home. I don't know where the month went. I did a lot of traveling, but it doesn't feel like it's possible that this is already the beginning of our last month in Europe. Time's flying by, moving so fast. I leave tomorrow to travel Italy for 10 days. I'll return to Vienna for 4 days before heading off for another 10 days of travel through Germany, Switzerland, Spain, France, and Belgium. Then it will be back to Vienna for Thanksgiving and two final weeks in Vienna. I'll never get another experience like this. It's unlikely that I'll ever live in a foreign country again. It's unlikely that I'll get another experience that will teach me so much academically and personally. It's unlikely that I won't miss Vienna when I get home. So I guess..I'd better make it count cause I can't get it back.
