Life Achievement: Cavanaugh

"You'll come back changed"

Whenever I talked to students who had already completed their study abroad programs the response was unvarying.  My response was much the same: raised eyebrows.  After all, I would hope that in the process of spending 6 months in a different country I would learn new things, adapting my world view as needed to encompass these new facts and ideas.  I would be more worried if I returned exactly the same as when I departed.

What they didn't tell me but I figured out:

"Everyone else is moving forward as well"

 

This last week I gained a life achievement: I became an aunt.

I knew when I applied for this program that I would be away from my elder sister during this time.  At Christmas I will return to a 3 month old nephew, Cavanaugh.  It is strange to think that my parents became grandparents, that my sister and brother-in-law are now parents.

My sister will have changed in an obvious way, but I wonder about the other people in my life.  Everyone will have changed in the six months that I was away from home - will I be able to spot the differences?  The prospect is both sad and exciting at the same time.

I will continue learning and exploring, making the most of my time abroad, and I look forward to meeting the newest addition to my family when I return home.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Amazing

Image
"The summer weather here is amazing!" - Finnish girl in my class  Class eyed her in disbelief as the average day here is 90 °F with a humidity level  ranging between 70 - 90%.  But it got me thinking...       I concur
Read more

Surviving the airport

Image
Also known as " how long is my layover?!" As you prepare to travel internationally you will soon realize that there is no such thing as a direct flight from Des Moines to your destination.  When I applied to study in Hong Kong I had no idea that the city I'd end up fixating on in my travels was Los Angeles (LA).  I can only shake my head in amazed disbelief at the fact that I have had two twenty-plus hour layovers in LA.  Layovers, security, and the airplane rides themselves are all things that lie between you and your destination.  Below are some lessons and observations I have gleaned from my travels that will hopefully help you get through the different ordeals and survive the airport. Packing your carry-on The sad truth is that regardless of how well thought out and carefully packed your suitcase is, the very first thing you do once beginning your journey is to say goodbye to your suitcase at the check-in counter.  From there on out you must rely on your c
Read more

Mistakes to expect when learning about a place

Image
"Welcome to Hong Kong, your new home for the next four months and a place beyond your wildest dreams."  I mean that quite literally as I was apparently imagining a completely different city, a fact that became clear within my first few days in Hong Kong.  Growing up in the US, when I think of cities I automatically picture New York City.  Hearing that Hong Kong had over 8 million people in a very small area I figured that it would look much like Manhattan - dense with lots of high-rises.  And looking at pictures of the two, I unconsciously decided that they must be very similar, at least in layout. New York Apparent Similarities: 1) Concrete masses 2) Skyscrapers 3) Lovely city night lights 4) Large populations and thus many things to do Hong Kong Differences upon arrival : 1) Hong Kong is tropical (which i knew) and thus is part jungle (which was completely unexpected). Note: New York = concrete mass + Central Park 2) Hong Kong is built on hills.
Read more