Semi-Serious Post

Have you ever found yourself on the outskirts of the life of a friend who was once very close to you?  This has happened to me a few different times, and with different people that I hold close to my heart.  Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter make it hard for me to escape the memories of a lost friend.  Pictures, videos, and status updates offer bits and pieces of a life with which I was once involved.  Severing ties with a dear friend always involves lots of hurt and confusion.  Sometimes, this lost friend becomes a mere acquaintance; sometimes this lost friend simply fades into the past and becomes a stranger. 

Because I’m so far away, I feel disconnected from one of my friends back home who needs me.  This friend may or may not miss me while I’m here, but I feel obligated to check up on this friend and make sure this person is doing okay.  Maybe I’m exaggerating my own importance; this person is probably doing just fine without me.  But that won’t stop me from worrying and praying for her.

Why am I so sentimental?  I suppose living in a foreign country has made me especially reflective.  There are the really high moments when I feel like I’m walking on air.  Then there are the lower moments when I feel homesick or just sad for no good reason.  It’s a strange set of emotions.  Once I settle into a schedule, perhaps I’ll get back to normal old me.  At least these dramatic mood swings make for interesting blog posts!

On a significantly less emotional note, I am adjusting to life in Canterbury fairly well.  It still feels like a vacation, even though school has started up.  I wonder if I’ll ever come back here after my term is finished.  This would be a lovely place to live.  Can’t say I haven’t considered it for my future…

Life is not the same without my family and friends from back home.  I miss them dearly.  However, the homesickness comes in tiny bursts and then suddenly disappears again.  It’s not like a terrible, constant pain that I have to live with every day.  It’s more of a “oh, I wish so-and-so were here to experience this with me!”  Obviously, I miss my family, but somehow, I am oddly comfortable with being away from home.  I expected it to be much worse for me.  Homebody that I am, I figured I would be crying and eating my weight in chocolate by the two-week marker.  Thankfully, this has not happened yet (I don’t think all of the UK combined would not have enough to chocolate to satisfy my cravings, haha). 

Believe it or not, I am finding it difficult to imagine myself ever leaving this place.  The university here is absolutely brilliant.  CCCU makes NCC look like a community college from rural Illinois.  It’s kind of sad, actually.  The library here is state-of-the-art.  The music facilities are about equal to what I have back home (in terms of practice and performance space at NCC).  And so far my tutors are all very intelligent and interesting.  The only major difference (and it is a MAJOR difference) is the class size and overall student population.  CCCU’s student population is about 27,000, which is greater than the actual resident population of Canterbury.  NCC’s student body is roughly 3,000.  So you can imagine how intimidating that was and continues to be for me and my fellow Americans! 

Anyway, I’ve rattled on enough about my life.  I promised myself I would update this blog instead of just my travel blog (see previous post… yes, it’s supposed to be a joke).  The travel blog is mainly for recording day to day activities and adventures, posting pictures for those who don’t have Facebook, etc.  This blog is more of a personal blog and I prefer to keep it that way.  Like I mentioned, I don’t want to feel like I have to write about a certain topic when I’m posting here.  The travel blog is for professors, teachers, family, and friends back home.  I’m not gonna lie, its main purpose is to keep me from having to answer the same questions about my travels over and over again.  Don’t get me wrong, I love retelling my stories and adventures!  But I don’t plan on doing that often.  The general rule is: If you want to Skype me, read my blog post first so I don’t have to answer unnecessary questions.  Sounds really cold, but Skyping people from home is surprisingly draining, both emotionally and mentally. 

Okay, now I’m really gonna stop.  Until next time!

Here’s what I've been listening to while writing this post:

The Civil Wars - To Whom it May Concern

Cheers!