I only have one more month left in Chile. I have never really had to leave behind so much before. In Seattle I have lived in the same house since I was a baby. I may have graduated through the Seattle school system, but my friends and everyone I knew were always in the same city as me. If I wanted I could reunite with them and even sometimes just run into them during a normal day. Though I have finished things the people and places were always accessible. Now I am discovering a very strange sensation of true disconnection. True, I can use technology to talk with my friends and family in Chile, but it really won’t be the same. Even if I return to Chile the other foreign exchanges students will be scattered across the globe.

Now, this sounds as if I am becoming homesick for my new home already. The fact is I am excited to return home to Seattle, and I am sad I am leaving Chile but I plan on taking part of the wonderful country with me. Through my spanish, pictures, my diary, my memories and moments of reflection with friends I made here I can find my Chilean home. It will be yet another gift of maturity Chile has given me. Something more to grow from.

So what does one do with a limited time left in a far away paradise? I already feel very satisfied with my time, nothing feels wasted. So what do I do? There are so many possibilities, but for now I believe it will be best to spend it with the people and the city of Valparaiso.