Preparing To Leave And The Goodbyes That Come With

     There’s been a lot of tears shed in the days leading up to my flight to San Francisco for global launch. Saying goodbye for now to my friends proved to be way more difficult than anticipated and they just got harder as my departure grew closer. Knowing my family was coming up to say goodbye at the end of the week eased my emotions and allowed me to cherish the time with my friends, but my face was tear stained nonetheless. I had expected these emotions, but what I didn’t expect was how difficult saying goodbye to the places and things I was leaving behind would be.

Here’s a list of the things I didn’t expect to cry over while preparing to leave:

•      Driving south towards PCH
•      Sleeping in my bed for the last time for a while
•      Leaving my car (that probably won’t be there when I get back)
•      Receiving bracelets from my closest friends
•      Putting things in my suitcase

     Yeah, saying goodbye to all these things was hard, but I think I was emotional over them for a completely different reason than I initially thought. I wasn’t upset about leaving them, I was upset over the fact that I was never going to experience these things the same way ever again. I was about to leave home for the first time and embark on a seriously crazy adventure that will not only change my view on California, but the whole world as I know it. Coming to this realization was the first time I can remember ever being absolutely terrified of the unknown, but I also could not wait to get on that plane and leave.

On the short plane ride to San Francisco, I realized a few things:

• Technology is such an incredible thing. My phone was blowing up with messages from all the fellows sharing their travels and my family and friends wishing me luck and a safe flight. It made me feel so connected even though I was about to board a plane that wasn’t taking me back home in a few days.
• I’m so ready for this. I made it through security, took a deep breath, and suddenly I felt this confidence I hadn’t felt in the last few days and all my nerves began fading away.
• “Excited and nervous are the same feeling, it’s just the label you give it,” is absolutely true. Shout-out to Mrs. DeBerard for this one because this being said in her voice has been running through my head a lot. My nerves really did turn into excitement when I got on that plane, but they were the same exact uncomfortable feeling in my stomach.

I really cannot wait for this adventure to begin.

I haven’t yet reached my fundraising goal and it would mean so much to mean if you considered donating! Here’s a video explaining a little but about what the fundraiser is for and why it is so important to me:
https://youtu.be/XJn4iJlep84
And here’s a link directly to my fundraising page:
https://donate.globalcitizenyear.org/carlynolan