So I don't have any sweet song lyric to put up or really anything witty to put up here, but I thought that it would be good to do one last post before I set off on the long journey home.
I know that I have expressed great fear about coming home, but as time has passed my fear is not as much for myself, rather more for some of the people on this trip. Today in class we spent a great deal of time trying to find words to express personal feelings. This proved to be a difficult task and only after repetition did the words start to flow in a more fluid way. This was then related to how we are going to make meaning to our people back at home, and the reality that some may not understand, and we have to accept that as being "ok". I know that I have made some kick ass friends here and no matter what we have this experience here to keep us all connected. We have planned ways to raise money for a family that we worked closely with in the township, made summer plans and are looking forward being each other's support system upon arrival in the States. They always say that going home is much harder then leaving in the first place, and I still don't know why that is, but that will prove to be one of the biggest challenges for many of us.
I am so lucky to go home to people that understand me, have been through similar experiences or have been by me as I have done it in the past. For some students this was their first trip outside of the Midwest and as you have read this has been an emotionally charged 3 weeks.
I have only been able to express a limited amount of my time and emotions here in South Africa. Some are too personal and I am unable to literally type them out on the computer. Some I saved to share with people upon arrival but all of them have shaped me into a different person than I was on May 25th. But a good person, not some scary self-righteous wannabe.
I will hopefully be keeping up on the blog upon arrival so you can here first hand accounts of the reverse culture shock that so many hear about, but for now I must go and get ready for our final dinner with some wonderful people, perhaps some tears and a lot of laughs!
ciao for now
lots of love and peace!
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1 comment:
I hope you do put some more after-thoughts down in your blog. I have enjoyed reading it, and although you THINK you haven't expressed yourself here, you have. Maybe not to your full satisfaction, but in ways that have opened my eyes a little, at least. I hope that counts for something.
Good work Sarah. Keep it up!
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