So close, I can taste it!

Initially, when reading that title, you would think I am referring to the fact that I have less than four weeks left in Germany. And in a way, that is not entirely incorrect. I will give you an example of a time when this realization hit home.

Last night, I had dinner with Kelsi, Mia, and Ah Hyeon, the latter of whom had prepared the rest of us an amazing meal of traditional Korean home-cooking. Up to that point, I had taken some pride in my cooking abilities and my knowledge gained from years and years of watching my dad cook. Even if I do not have any personal experience, such as in making a homemade apple pie, I at least know enough about it to be not completely clueless when I finally attempt something (those three apple pies I baked for American Night turned out to be heavenly--thanks Dad!!). But then, as Ah Hyeon laid these incredibly tasty dishes out on front of us, I was justifiably humbled. One of friendly modesty, Ah Hyeon admitted that her experience in cooking was limited, but it did not matter. She had managed to scrounge together one of the best meals I have had in Europe, and that is saying a lot.

Once dinner was over, we sat for a couple more hours making jokes and taking embarrassing pictures for memories' sake. But all at once, staring at the map of Germany on Ah Hyeon's wall, and glancing at all the places I have already been, it hit me like a ton of feather pillows that I was done traveling, and that I was soon to go home, where traveling consisted of the trip to and from AU, and occasionally the trip to and from Ohio Wesleyan to visit my sisters. I knew that our time was coming to a close, but something about that map made it real. And that made me a little sad.

So we spent the rest of the night planning out a photo scavenger hunt we still have the dream of playing before we all go back to our respective corners of the globe. But as time runs short, and we come upon more and more obstacles--namely those darn Hausarbeiten (semester projects)--we are starting to feel, even though we have not had the heart to say it out loud to each other, that it may not happen. I remember one of our first weekends here, when we were exploring the city of Erfurt. I think we were talking about the scavenger hunt even then, but in context I no longer remember, one of us remarked, "It doesn't matter. We have plenty of time." Sitting in a moment of silence last night, I think all four of us simultaneously wondered to ourselves where that time had gone.

In any case, what I was actually referring to in the title is the fact that I am a conclusion away from finishing my first paper of the semester. It has shockingly been six months since I have written one of any length, which is nearly impossible for a student of English, History, and Political Science like me, who has written almost as many words as hours that I have been alive, to comprehend. Thus, the feeling of an almost completed paper after so long of a break is a pretty good one, and one that I thought I would like to share.

And I should remark, on a bittersweet note, that the completion of this paper will bring me that much closer to being finished with the semester.

Perhaps that is why it is taking me all day to write it.