Four long months it has been since I left Grand Rapids, Michigan on a plane.
It seems like a very long time, four months. It is a very long time. A whole lot of things happen in four months. I have lists and lists of things that have happened to me in four months, and from what I can tell, they've changed me, broadened my mind, shaken up my soul, made me open my eyes and really see the world for the first time. Four months ago, I wasn't prepared to be away from everything I know and love for almost half a year. Four months later, I'm still not prepared.
It all began as a whirl. I adapt relatively well as long as I have a task or a job, something on which to focus, to draw my attention away from my emotions and feelings of neglect and loneliness. I do not make friends quickly. You can tell from my earlier posts that I was not particularly impressed, either, further throwing me into a dark mood.
Since then (and you'll have noticed that my posts have gotten progressively more positive), it seems as if almost everything has changed. I love England. I love the English. More than the English, I love the Scottish and the Greek. I love tea and curious words and the countryside and Spring and anything and everything having to do with this place except the weather (blasted weather--I have a whole other post about the weather).
Four months is a very long time, indeed.
With 25 days left to my journey, it is difficult to look back without noticing just how little time four months is. Despite the enormous number of curious events that have happened to me and lovely people I have met and picturesque places I have been, it seems that I have only just touched the surface of this place. There are so many places I still want to discover, so many people to meet, so much history to touch and watch unravel before my very eyes. I haven't seen the homes and graves of my favourite authors, or experienced the land and culture as they are meant to be experienced and appreciated, as those who write such lyrical lines about them mean for one to experience them. Even within York and its surrounding areas, I feel as though I've barely gotten to know the city. I don't even know where the nearest ASDA is.
Even more terrifying is the idea that I'm so close to all the most wonderful things I've ever wanted to see--the temple ruins in Athens and all over Greece, the Vatican in Rome, Amsterdam, Germany, Spain--the entirety of Europe, and yet four months is not nearly enough time to see it all! How can I have spent four months here and seen so little?
I can't thank God enough for these last four months, though. Despite feeling as though I don't have enough time with all of these wonderful people in these wonderful places, I get the feeling that God has started something big. I don't know what I'll do without the friends I've made here, from my flatmates to the volleyball team to the students at Red Dog music to the beautiful Vitsou family--each of them has touched my life and opened my eyes, and it's hard to understand that even in so little time, they've become a big part of my life.
The most frustrating thing is not knowing how to thank them all. I keep trying to think of ways to tell them how blessed I am to have been able to meet them, spend time with them, and get to know them, but I really can't think of a way. I suppose I'll think about it for another couple of weeks, then get things in order and actually try to figure out what to do. Until then, I'll just continue to enjoy their company, yeah?
