Hello and welcome to you all! This is blog is going to be a way for you all to know what is going on while I am abroad as well as a way for me to externally process my thoughts. I feel like I should warn you now, I do have a tendency to get all stream-of-consciousnessy when write/type out my thoughts like this and I'm brand new to blogging so pardon me if it seems like I don't know what I'm doing (because I don't). Also, I'm a big fan of clichés (as you'll soon find out) so be prepared for that. Hopefully, some of this will be coherent and maybe even thoughtful. With all this in mind, let's begin.
It's been almost a year since I got accepted to this program and the chance to study abroad in Istanbul for a semester. It's been even less time since I started the orientation seminar class to start preparing our cohort for the trip, and even less time than that since I finished the orientation seminar class. One might think that with all this time I've had to think about this trip I'd have some sense of how I feel about it. That is not the case. Am I excited to have this wonderful opportunity to study abroad on the other side of the globe? Of course I am. Am I nervous that I'll be in a country and culture that I'm not familiar with, in addition to not knowing the language? Yes, I am. Yet, there are so many other different feelings and expectations that they all sort of cancel each other out. I don't know how to feel or what it will be like. I consider myself to be pretty easy going and adaptable so I feel like I'll be fine, but my parents want to make sure I'll be safe and have everything I need, which makes me feel like I'm underprepared (but thanks anyways, Mom and Dad).
My suitcase is basically all packed though (just a few more things to throw in) and most of the goodbyes have been said. My flight leaves on Sunday evening so I do have some time tomorrow to double/triple check to make sure I didn't forget anything. As excited as I am to go, I do wish I had more time so say goodbye to my friends and try and prepare myself more (if that would even be possible). Time has a tendency to fly by when you're not paying attention to it and I guess I really haven't been. But ready or not, worried or not, this trip will happen and I'll just have to deal with it as best I can. I remember hearing the phrase, "The first step is always the hardest" and that seems to have an element of truth to it so I'm going to use it. I have no idea what it's going to be like. I have no idea if I'm prepared. I have no idea what is going to happen. But this journey is a new chapter in my life, just like every single day, and in order to try and find out these things and the answers to some of my questions, I need to take the first step (see what I did there) knowing that I have God and my friends and family supporting and praying for me. Thanks for reading.
Blessings upon you, my friends. Until next time.
In Christ,
Ethan
P.S. The cohort and I will be doing a social media fast for the first month so I won't be using Facebook or Instagram. However, I will have access to email so you can reach me at etpark@westmont.edu or check back here for updates.
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