But really, are any of us real people?

April 2nd. 29 days left in France, what the hell?

When I started, I knew time would fly...but I guess I didn't realize it would go by THIS fast. The last 6 months of my life have been SUCH a blur.

Cleared out my phone today and text messages sent in September feel like they were sent yesterday.

I'm so excited for the next, I'm gonna say...3 months.

April I'm going to try and live it up and enjoy the last of the time I have here as much as I can.

May will be readjusting to a life I once knew. I feel the same as when I left Tucson, but I know that I can't be. You can't spend 7 months in a completely foreign country away from everyone you've ever known for the first time and expect to go home as though nothing has changed.

June I shall be setting off to Israel for 10 days on my birthright trip. For those of you that don't know, every person with a Jewish parent is entitled to a free guided trip to Israel before they are 26. I know several people who have done this and they have told me it was absolutely the best experience ever. I cannot wait. I'm hoping it will further this year of self-discovery.

The last two and a half weeks have been really rough. Lots of stuff has been going on and because of that I am just ready to be at home and be around my family.

However,  on the other hand, this has been SUCH a rewarding experience and I have met amazing people and I know that it won't take long for the nostalgia and the realization that I won't be able to just walk down the Vieux Port to see everyone hits.

It's been a Rollercoaster and I know I've complained about being here a lot but, honestly, I wouldn't change a minute of it for the world.

Time's a-tickin'.

So it is officially less than 2 weeks until I leave. Time is flying!

Sunday was my last salsa social, which was a sort of jumpstart to the goodbye process. I think everything hit me then. The last week has been rough; it seemed like everything was crumbling before me and I was convinced that I had made the worst decision ever.

I still don't have anywhere to live, but I think I have a plan so that is a huge relief. I'm going to stay in a hotel close to the airport for at least the first night or two so that I'm not trying to navigate the metro (which is COMPLETELY foreign to me) while exhausted and stressed and probably really sad.

With all that said, I think I'm ok with going. There is going to be SO much that I will miss here. Ritmos looks like it's going to be so solid and so good and I am so sad I'm going to miss this semester...but I can't wait to come back in the spring and see all the progress these beginners have made.

I'm going to miss all my friends (old and new) beyond belief but I know we will cross paths again one day.

Everytime I see a video or something set in France I get butterflies. I was looking at hotels in Marseille and they had the most gorgeous pictures of the sea I have ever seen and I still refuse to believe that that will be home for at least the next 7 months. Man, I am a very lucky girl.

Tying up some loose ends.

Things are slowly getting more and more real. In 24 hours I will no longer be a Safeway employee. It's a weird feeling, I have worked there for 5 1/2 years...I have essentially grown up there.

As much as there have been moments where I have absolutely hated that place and wished I could just quit, I have learned SO much and met SO many great people that I would not give up a single moment I spent there.

I will never forget my first day; a very naive 17 year old girl who had never had any sort of job before. I was terrified. My manager was so mean and I almost quit that day because it was so traumatizing. Then I went out to another store to train and it was so much fun and I was SO happy I had taken the job. 

I am so relieved to finally be out of there, and that I am getting out now, but in the end I will miss Safeway and the friends that I have made there. 

I am one step closer to the next chapter of my life, where I will hopefully learn and grow exponentially more.