Time is an amazing yet perplexing dimension; day by day, each second can feel like hours and each hour like eternity. Yet, suddenly you realize a year has gone by, and you wonder, "Where did the time go?!"
It continues to astonish me that my German professor reached out to me four months ago to tell me about an amazing opportunity to teach English in Köln for a year. Now, here I am, two days away from perhaps the most life-changing and equally terrifying experience of my life. Where did the time go?!
I have been to Germany twice before. I speak German at an intermediate level. I have traveled to Vienna all by myself and learned to navigate the train system in just three days. Yet, I sit here now feeling strangely unprepared. Though I have obtained a German visa, printed every document I need (at least I think I have...), found student housing, and built a relationship with a gracious family in Köln who will meet me at the airport and provide me with hospitality on my first night, I somehow still feel unsure.
I guess it is a bit different to visit a city for a week or to travel overseas for a voice program with other Americans. This time, I am not merely a tourist or a singer attempting to work on language and technique within an overseas, American bubble. This time, I am coming to stay and live as a citizen.
I know the first few days will be tough, filled with logistical mayhem and misdirection (believe me, I will leave for meetings two hours early just in case I get lost!). But I also know week two will be better than week one, and week three will be a piece of cake.
I know I will miss my family, my friends, and my boyfriend like crazy, and the idea of building new relationships after only recently saying goodbye to some of the best friends I could ask for is daunting. But I also know that in time, I will have a new group of incredible friends, this time from all over the world, and that is pretty f$%@ing cool!
I promised myself that I would not play life safe. I want to take advantage of life-changing opportunities, not because they will make my resume look better or get me from point A to point B on the road towards my future, but rather, because they will help me grow as a person, gain independence and confidence, and ultimately, teach me about myself in ways that staying in the United States cannot. Aufwiedersehen to the type-A girl who always knows what is coming next, and hallo to the new, healthy risk-taker. I look forward to sharing my personal journey with all of you!