Preparing To Go

Traveling is an amazing experience, it's always something new and exciting. It gives you the opportunity to experience different cultures and ways of life and to just expand your views and knowledge of the world. Moving to a new place is a little bit different then traveling, it's of course exciting but also kind of nerve-racking and a lot more preparation work. But that's okay, it's totally worth it, even if it's only for a year like my exchange, I'm not too sure what to expect but I know it's going to be amazing. Some people would never move away or even go on exchange because they can't bear the thought of leaving home or being That far away from family or whatever attachments they have...but that's never been me, I moved to the opposite side of the country for university and that was nice and far away, to be honest, it was the best decision I've ever made to date. Being independent brought so much more to my life, it's hard to go back to being dependent and living within restrictions again being home for the summer. I love traveling and moving because it gives you a fresh start, you can begin again, and the only thing that stops you from doing that is your own attachments to your old place/life/city. I'm not saying I left home cold-heartedly with no attachments or anything; my family and closest friends were still there but that didn't stop me from leaving, those attachments were part of me and of course I missed all those people, but they were attachements that I could live without seeing for awhile and still be completely happy and functional elsewhere. Coming home is still the best thing in the world, but as I'm slowly discovering, "home" is not necessarily where you grew up. As the years have gone on, my attachments to my home town have grown fewer and fewer, my parents don't even live in the same house I grew up in anymore, so really, what is "home"? Soon enough my friends will graduate and probably move else where and in time my parents will probably no longer be living in the same city at all, so this place is becoming less and less like home. Maybe I'm starting to get to that point where I'm trying to figure out where I feel like home is, going away on exchange definitely won't help that situation but's okay, for now, and kinda like always, I am a free spirit full of wanderlust and I now have the chance to see the world, have a fresh start, be whoever I want to be. I have no idea what the future holds, but I'm excited to find out. Leaving is always hard, but I will be back again, hopefully happier and wiser.