Saying Goodbyes

Goodbyes are always a tricky thing. They may be the last time you see someone for a while, a long while, or ever. Richard Bach (whoever that is) once said, "Don't be dismayed at goodbyes.  A farewell is necessary before you can meet again.  And meeting again, after moments or lifetime, is certain for those who are friends." I usually don't try to place too much emphasis on goodbyes. The time you have spent with a person, the memories you share, the conversations you've had, that's what truly matters and that is most often what you'll truly remember while you're away from and missing that person. That last hug or shared conversation is meaningful in the moment, but then it is gone and what holds you tied to that person is your love and care for one another.


I've never really had to say goodbye to people like I have had to this past week and will have to in the week or so before I leave. It's almost like a mourning process. I will not be living in the dorms next semester with all of my friends. 114 Gilchrist Hall will no longer be mine. That will not be my place because I will have left it. And while I will be returning next year, things will never be the exact same as they were when I left. Something that seems so trivial, a last shower in the dorms, is really so important because it represents how at home and happy and blessed I have felt during my time thus far at MSU. And this home is what I will most be missing during my time abroad; the feeling that everywhere I turn there are people to take care of me and love me and laugh with me and eat with me and share with me and care about me and talk to and listen to. It is this experience of shared living that I love so much about my GFG family. While I will not be returning to the dorms as a resident, there are new and exciting things to look forward to about next year. A HOUSE! Living off campus is something I have been looking forward to ever since we started house-hunting in September. Caitlin, Colleen, Andrew, & I are going to have a blast figuring out how to live in and take care of a house together and I am so excited to do that. I'm excited to have my own room and dishes and just so much more personal space than in the dorms. I'm so excited to be able to return to State of Fifths. This semester they will be competing at ICCA without me, which is sad, but I am overjoyed to be able to hear of their successes and cheer them on from afar as they face their competition. They are another family for me that makes me feel loved and cherished and important, and I am excited to return to sing with them and audition new family members.


Leaving MSU for a semester is a very hard thing for me to do because of how in love I am with it, but I am confident that this semester will be more than worth it.


-EM


P.S. Check out this virtual tour of the USFQ campus: Virtual Tour