Halfway done. Halfway home.

No longer am I counting up to see how long I have been in Namibia.  Today marks the official start to a countdown.  In exactly 6 months, I will be boarding an airplane, flying home to Texas where I will be greeted with hopefully cold weather, big hugs, the best holiday ever, and a warm bath.  It is crazy to think that I am officially halfway done with this journey.  It is crazy that I have made it so far.  It is crazy how much I have already grown from these past 6 months.

Leaving the country will be both rewarding and challenging.  It will be so nice to be back home with my family and friends, but it will be hard to say goodbye to these students that I know I will never see again.  Let’s face it, a Namibian trip probably only happens once in a lifetime, especially because of the cost and time it takes to get here.  So when I say goodbye, it is really a goodbye.  I hope that within the next 6 months my students will learn something from me that sticks with them for months to come (or a lifetime).  I hope they start to understand how big our world is.  I hope they start to think more seriously about attending university.  And lastly, I hope that at the end of the year, they will understand how much I admire them, respect them, and care for them.