When I signed up for this experience I had a picture in my mind of how this bridge year bridge year would go and I could not have been more incorrect. I thought I was going to be living in the jungle in a house held up by stilts with flip flops as my sole form of footwear. I thought I’d be switching from english to spanish with complete ease and the vernacular of an Ecuadorian. I thought I'd see other fellows at most once a month. I thought I'd be be working in a field and fetching my water from the well. I never expected the year I got and I couldn't be more grateful. I found home in not only but two beautiful communities. I found joy and love in familia Fuentes y familia Palacios. I laughed with my coworkers at the the panadería made jokes with my coworkers at the ministerio. I never knew that this is what finding a new home would feel like, I didn't expect any of this but I'm glad I took the plunge and I'm glad I found a home here in Ecuador.