Leaving Home for Home

I am filled with mixed emotions right now. Tomorrow morning I will be leaving a place I call home for another place I call home. Bittersweet. I have lived in Japan for two years now. I have met some of the nicest people on the face of the earth, done some incredible things, been able to travel a smidgen of the globe, and lived in a completely unique (and sometimes bizarre) country.

I taught English to day care students, elementary students, junior high school students, and even a few old, eager elders. I learned the names of every single one of them (something I thought would never happen), what they liked, who their brother/sister was, what subject they excelled in. Not only that, but I feel like I really got to know them. Despite the mother tongue language barrier, it is amazing how much can be expressed with a little patience and a few basic words.

I came to Japan sporting a goatee, being able to speak 3 or 4 words, not knowing how to use chopsticks, weighing 106 kilos, and not knowing anyone in Japan. Now, I am leaving clean-shaven, able to speak 3- or 4-dozen words, a chopstick pro, weighing 92 kilos, and with a friendship with an entire village in the Japanese countryside!

What's next? At the end of August, I'll be moving to circa Austin, TX to attend graduate school in analytical chemistry. It's sad to think of a new beginning when you wouldn't mind not having the last thing end. But yeah, life goes on. I am ready for the next adventure! This blog was pretty much dedicated to my experiences in Japan. I would like to start another blog about happenings in my life, but analytical chemistry (endearingly known as Anal Chem by chem majors) isn't exactly the most exciting thing to read about. We'll see what happens. I hope you enjoyed reading this blog, I know I sure enjoyed writing it!

Sayonara from Japan. I'll see you in America.