A Week of "Good-Bye's" and "Hello's"

Two days until orientation! Since Friday, this week has been full of bidding farewell to my dear friends and family, and also, of meeting new people who I will have the privilege of sharing this SALT experience with. On Friday night, 7 of us got together at the MCC Ontario head office to share a meal and just chat about the upcoming year. It was so wonderful to put faces to some names, and to establish a group of familiar faces that will be in Akron on Thursday.

On Sunday afternoon, my family threw me an incredibly beautiful going-away get-together, where I had the opportunity to say good-bye to many people that I wouldn't have had the chance to otherwise. The get-together was a much needed reminder of how unbelievably blessed I am. I am surrounded by people who care so much about me, who are so supportive of the plans for my life, and who demonstrate that support in a multitude of ways. I was overwhelmed by the number of people who came, by the cards, by the gifts, and by the words of encouragement- thank you all SO much!

I've realized that, though saying good-bye isn't easy (and in some cases, may feel like the hardest thing EVER to do), the time has come for it to happen, and I'm ready for it. This experience with SALT is one that I have been looking forward to embarking on for years, and particularly, in the last five months. I'm feeling like I cannot wait any longer and I cannot prepare myself any better.

I'm looking forward to the upcoming "hello's" that will occur in the next week. I'm so excited for the chance to meet people from all over the world, who are all setting off on adventures similar to mine, and who thus all have in common a desire to serve others and learn from our global community. I'm still so nervous, but I feel more and more certain that this is going to be one incredible journey, and I'm ready to get started!