First, I'm going to apologize for the wait. I've found myself with little desire to write, and much to do. I've done so much these past weeks! A trip with my school, going to Essen, ice skating, and Thanksgiving. I'm afraid this recollection will likely be a tiney bit haphazard.
Last Saturday I went to Essen, where I met with another exchange student, Amelia. I took the trains, which was both entertaining and boring. My first train was rather late, and I barely made the connection to my second train. Other than that, it was a remarkably pleasant journey. I met Amelia and we walked around the Christmas and Medieval Markets in Essen. Drinking coffee, catching up, and just generally enjoying ourselves. As both of us are from Virginia, we talked about traditions and cultural differences that strike us the most. One particular thing that has changed for both of us was our accents, they've faded, or changed. It's a little thing, but for some reason it still bothers me. I didn't have a very thick southern accent, but it was there. Now, it's barely noticeable. We talked about what is considered polite, and what's not. Some things that are rude in the U.S. aren't rude here, and it can be difficult to step out of polite behavior when it isn't warranted. All in all, I just had a lovely time catching up with a dear friend. This week I went on a two day trip with my class, to Haus Neuland. It was a seminar structure event, to get to know each other and work on what skills or interests are applicable later in life. Unfortunately, I've received similar training both at my former workplace and as counselor training, so the seminars themselves weren't always interesting. Getting to know other students, that was endlessly entertaining. Unfortunately, I had to leave a little early to make an appointment, but regardless it was fun. Last week I went ice skating with my host siblings. As some of you are well aware of, I am clumsy. I trip over my own feet, and slip at the most inopportune times. Learning to skate, was interesting. One of my friends, Julianne, was there and helped me. By the end of the two hours I was skating with some level of independence, but that hadn't saved me from falling about four times, and occasionally taking down my friend with me. As a result, I had some rather lovely bruises, but am now not utterly hopeless at skating. Yesterday was Thanksgiving. I made what my family generally makes, with smaller portions. Unfortunately, there is still a world of leftovers. I cooked for about eight hours total over two days, resulting in Jalepeno Corn, Mac n Cheese, Mashed Potatoes, Stuffing, Turkey Breasts, Cranberry Sauce, Gravy, Green Beans, Broccoli, Pumpkin Bars, and Oreo Pie. It went remarkably well, and I had a wonderful time. Admittedly, I struggled with homesickness. I missed my Nana and my siblings and my parents. What with my siblings away at school, Thanksgiving is reliably one of the only times outside of Christmas we're all together. This year however, my brother and I are both studying abroad, so it was a much smaller family gathering. I didn't think I'd struggle as much with homesickness now as I have and am. They warn you that the holidays are difficult, but I always thought I'd struggle more with Christmas than Thanksgiving. Cooking everything was perhaps the hardest part, and not because of the labor involved. In the days leading up to Thanksgiving, my family's kitchen is a whirlwind of laughter and movement. As I worked on the dishes, that was when I missed my family the most. I wished I was making the oreo pie with Nana, and she would scold me for suggesting we eat the filling now instead of putting it in the pie. I wished I was arguing with my sister about whether there's enough of this or that in the potatoes. At one point, I couldn't remember the grace my family says before dinner. That, more than anything, made me want to cry. I've said the grace for my family almost every day since I was in preschool until this year. I've said it every Thanksgiving and Christmas without fail. This year, I couldn't remember it. Maybe it was finally learning the grace my host family says, or just not saying it recently, but I couldn't remember. I'm thankful for so many things this year. I'm thankful I've gotten the chance to study abroad, to meet so many people, to learn so much, to live with such amazing host families, to be able to share my culture, to represent my country, to be healthy, that my family is healthy, that my friends and family have so much faith in me. I recently read the recommendations written about my for CBYX, and it was startling. I knew these people thought well of me, but to read what they'd written was another thing. My friends have giving me endless encouragement, and still keep me up to date about back home. My family has been nothing but supportive and so incredibly happy for me. My host families have been nothing but patient and kind, and I couldn't be more thankful for that. Being away from my family may be hard sometimes, but I wouldn't change anything for the world. I'm so thankful to be here, and to be alive right now. I've been listening to Hamilton recently, and I think it's apt to end this post with a quote from one of their songs, "Schuyler Sisters". "Look around, look around at how lucky we are to be alive right now!"
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McKennaI'm originally from Virginia, I'm going to Germany via CBYX. The blog title is a reference to a beloved nickname from my mother. Archives
October 2016
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