Forgive me for the title but I couldn't resist.
I'm writing this on the eve of my departure! I should definitely be asleep but I wouldn't be me if I wasn't packing in some last minute tasks. My dog, Zoya, is curled up at the edge of my bed, my ancient MacBook Pro is hard at work adding to my external hard drive, and, impressively, my bags are packed and waiting for me at my grandparents' front door.
Tomorrow's journey feels like a long time coming and yet, I'm surprised that it's already here. I received my invitation just about six months ago and got the last of my clearances three months ago. I left my job and the city of St. Louis at the end of April and have been hanging out with family and friends ever since. Regrettably, I didn't spend as much time studying Romanian as I had planned and struggled to fit in everything I had hoped, but that's par for the course.
I have a heart absolutely bursting with love and appreciation for all of the people in my life. I feel undoubtedly supported by family and friends near and far. Tonight was my last send-off: a cookout at my grandparents' house with my grandparents, parents, one of my brothers, two aunts, one uncle, three cousins, three amazing friends, and four lively dogs. The weather showed up (and so did the bugs, but that's summer in Missouri for you) giving us a low 70 degree clear evening after a few nights of storms and rain. My mom made her signature chocolate cake and my dad decorated it with the Moldovan flag, as is tradition in our family. We ate, drank, and were merry and the night concluded in lots of hugs and the frogs erupting in what now seems like endless song.
I know that my impending journey will be full of ups and downs and that I cannot even dream up what my experience will be like, but my support system will be around whenever I need them.
I'm so excited to get started on this adventure and can't wait to meet the rest of my cohort tomorrow (!!!!!!!!). So, if you're reading this, chances are you're one of the people who has cheered me on, offered words of wisdom, or even just wished me well in passing. I appreciate all of you and hope you'll stick around to follow along on my blog from time to time. I'll try to live up to the exceptional writers (and all around great people) in my family.
Enjoy these pictures from my send-off!
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