As I prepare to officially depart for London in less than 2 days, I can’t help but do a little reflecting on my thoughts about leaving what is comfortable and known to me, and to then be entering a foreign place that I have never been before. The familiarity of family, friends, and the pace of day to day life will be temporarily paused to enable me to see another part of the world full of diverse cultures, exotic landscapes, and new adventures for the next four months! In a way, I feel like I’m reliving my freshman year of college. New people, new places, new part of my life! Of all the uncertainty that surrounds college and going on an adventure like studying abroad, one thing that has remained certain for me ever since I was a freshman at Hope was to pursue a dream of mine of studying abroad.
As this past year has taught us anything, one of the realizations that has hit me is how little control we actually have of our hopes and dreams at times. As Australia was originally my preferred location to be for four months, the coronavirus halted this long-term aspiration and forced me to look at different options from a fresh perspective. In turn, I think this is what a lot of my time in Europe will entail. To be open to embracing a culture different from my own. To see a part of the world that I have never been exposed to before. To take advantage of all the new opportunities that will be presented to me. And lastly, to get out of my comfort zone!
As I have exhausted the search bar of Google looking up what all the UK and Europe has to offer, I’m ready to immerse myself first-handedly and experience it for myself! Here’s to a semester of growth, challenge, and joy!!