So, this summer has exceeded your wildest expectations. You have done what you’ve always dreamed of doing. You have finally traveled the world, and done it alone at that. Perhaps you have seen places that you have always dreamed of visiting or maybe you’ve seen incredible places that you never knew even existed. I can confidently now say that my heart belongs to the world. I’ve fallen in love with seeing new places and meeting new people. The more I see, the more places I want to go and the more questions about the world I have. And I for one know that I will never be the same again.
There is a catch though. Studying abroad must come to a close as we are all returning back to America. We must return to taking hours of credits of difficult classes, when we’d rather be attending strawberry festivals in Germany or running around Rome with your newest friends that you met in Florence just the night before. We’ve all been warned that this time would come. We’ve been told over and over that returning home will be one of the most difficult challenges of studying abroad as we will have to return to our daily routines and working towards our degrees and futures.
I am here to tell you, that it is possible to return home without any of those feelings of helplessness or depression that we’ve been told of. I am here to tell you that it isn’t worth wasting your time being sad over study abroad when there is so much to be looking forward to! Think about it. It’s the fall semester, which is the busiest time of the year! We are heading home to our beloved Gainesville and Gator football season is right around the corner. Some of us will be returning straight-away to sorority recruitment practice and then recruitment where we will be excited to meet our future littles or g-littles. Some of us will be returning to clubs and sports teams that we’ve missed. And I’m sure that all of us will be returning home to friends that we can’t wait to see more than anything.
We’re all still in college. Let’s embrace the time we have left. Let’s enjoy every second of the last few years we have in this crazy place. And most of all, let’s take all of our experiences and newfound passions we have gained while abroad and apply them to our lives back home. We aren’t going to push the thought of traveling under the rug. Let’s keep those dreams, passions and obsessions of seeing the world out in the forefront. Apply that passion even in America. You can certainly take roadtrips with your friends to different cities in the south on the weekends. My little and I already have a trip planned to Charleston, SC because neither of us have ever been before and are excited to travel to a new city. The LSU roadtrip to New Orleans is also right around the corner too!
Returning home from studying abroad isn’t the end of an era, but instead a new beginning. Now that you’ve had a glimpse of the world, your heart will never want to stop traveling and that’s a great motivating factor! Use that love of travel to spark your desire to learn more about the world and apply that knowledge to future internships and jobs. Who knows...you may spend your entire career traveling and seeing the world...now what could be more incredible than that?
