By Lawrence L.
Group 4

It is 10:05 p.m. on Tuesday, July 4th, and unlike most other Americans I am not keeping my neighbors awake by blasting fireworks. I’m preparing for one last full day of class before we leave for Spain. Whose idea was it to have class literally all day?

I’m feeling extremely nervous for the flight over there since I’ve never flown before. And I’m a bit sad because I know my dog is going to miss me. I’ll miss her too. But I am stoked for the adventure ahead. I realize that ahead of me is a once-in-a-lifetime journey that will probably change my life and I’m so ready to take it all in.

In Phil Cousineau’s book, The Art of Pilgrimage, he talks about the longing to travel as a stage of pilgrimage. He encourages us to treat our next journey as the “slow accretion of details” rather than an itinerary. As I sit here in my room, I can only hope that my pilgrimage ahead encapsulates just that.

 But really, my dog is going to be sad that I’ll be gone for a whole month. That’s almost seven months in dog time.

See you soon Freckles!