It's less than two weeks now until I step onto the airplane that will take me away from my town, into the international airport, and then to Chile.
I'm amazed at how busy I am becoming. Babysitting, my scrapbook, planning my sister's party, my own farewell party, sorting out how I will get money when I'm in Chile, packing and emailing my host family are things that I definitely don't mind doing, but do keep my on my toes. The scariest thought is that, if I don't get something sorted out before I go, it will be 10x harder to do in Chile, if not impossible.
Excitement alternates with nervousness. It was easy to be excited 4 months ago, when I had so much to look forward to, but not much of the reality. An exchange is definetely not going to be a cruisy holiday. I'm expecting it to be hard, tiring, frustrating, confusing, sad, lonely, but also an incredible once-in-a-lifetime oppurtuntiy, which I will be forever grateful for.
However, when I mention to my mummy 'less than two weeks now' I can't help but notice it makes her sadder to think that, and there's a little bit of guilt associated with leaving my beloved family for a year. She'll have to make my little brother's school lunch, someone else will have to clear the table after dinner, do weekend baking, babysit and hang out the washing, but nobody will be able to take the place of me (that sounds really self-(can't think of the word) but when I'm away, no-one will be able to take the place of my family either. I won't be able to groan and laugh with Mum and my little sister when an Abba song comes on shuffle, or have remark-competitions with my brother, or give my little brother hugs (although he does say he wants me to go because he won't have to listen to music all the time), I won't be able to go for car rides with my dad when he runs errands.
That's the family, now for my friends. I love all of you so much! You never fail to make me laugh or cheer me up when I'm down. Those crazy sleepovers . . . Talking on the phone, texting. I came to school last Tuesday to see everyone and give out invites to my farewell party. It's weird being so out-of-the-loop, not being up to date on all the goss, and that sort of thing. And that's just for the 1 week school had been back! But leaving what I have here, for an exchange, is definitely worth it. No doubt about that.
Exactly 2 weeks before I went, I decided some time ago, I would do a test-pack.
Can you imagine packing your life into a suitcase?
Luckily, I was 5kgs below the weight limit, according to our old crumby scales. I'm going to take my flute in my hand luggage (I'm going to a music school) and leave behind by beloved MacBook. Why? Aside from the worry of it getting broken, I think that being part of a family means sharing.
Next post I'll put up some facts about Copiapó, and AFS exchange, and some FAQ's.
11 days!
The pictures are of my packing, the NZ sticker on the back of my suitcase
EDIT: Sorry, no pictures. When I put them in the post, they come out RIDICULOUSLY HUGE. Any help with this would be appreciated :)
1 comment:
You're stronger than me! I could not leave behind the Mac Book. Never in a million years. I don't intend on using it much, but it is a necessity for me. Maybe even an security blanket.
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