When I first wanted to do this program, I was a either a freshman or sophomore BIMS major (no where close to finishing my CBKs). I was eager to take on the world and I was missing my love for travelling it. I have kept this program in the back of my mind and it has teased me every semester since. So when I got the email again last summer, I really started contemplating the opportunity. So in true procrastinator fashion, I decided to go - during my last semester as a college student. (Whoop? Tears? Sad ones? Happy ones? I don't know.)
Even though I had wanted to take this leap for so long, I still struggled with making my decision last summer. I ran it by everyone! First some people I worked with and some classmates I hardly knew - knowing that they would say the parts I wanted to hear: it's an incredible opportunity, I'll learn so much, it'll be a blast! I contemplated it longer before telling the people that I wanted support from most - my family and close friends. They were of course realistic with me, and helped me weigh the pros and cons, while encouraging me to make the decision that is best for me. So that's why we're here! After much thought, I knew I would regret not taking the chance while I had it. I am taking the leap and following my heart by answering the call for adventure that is the Hero's Journey.
Although I know I made the right decision for me, I worry about what I am leaving behind. I am worried about being gone for four months and how things will go on without me at home. The life that I live here will continue, just without me. However, the things that remain make me excited to return. At first I worried about that too - being excited for the program to be over before it's begun? But I've decided not to look at it that way. Instead, I will be excited for the journey. The one starting here, and the one that continues when I return.
As for this journey, I am excited to finally participate in this program! I can't wait to put work into our Enmodes project. Boy have I missed work! (Backstory: I didn't work this past Fall semester because I took 19 ((A-WHOOP)) hours in order to go on this trip and still graduate on time.) Working on a real problem or product will be a nice change of pace from hypothetical diagnoses practiced in the classroom. Speaking of, I am also excited for a change in the classroom! As a BIMS major, we never have classes of less than a few hundred people. This semester, the number shrinks to somewhere in the teens! I am beyond excited for that kind of instruction and community among peers. I really think I will benefit from this learning style, in the short term of grades and the long term in retaining and understanding.
Beyond schooling, the experiences of seeing and developing a new understanding of the world is something I. CANNOT. WAIT. FOR! Four months is a long time... and then again it isn't. Being immersed in so many cultures and languages is one of my favorite things about traveling! There is such beauty in the similarities and differences across borders (county lines, state lines, country borders, etc.). I think/hope that by the end of the program, Germany will feel like a second home to me.
Soooo.... here goes everything!
No comments:
Post a Comment