Backpacking Trip 2010

The time to leave Sarasota has arrived; we’re leaving tomorrow. The enormity of what I’m really doing has finally sunk in. Last night was our going away party and it was one incredible night! I said so many goodbyes, too many it feels like. Although originally I was dreading the goodbyes, specifically the guy I love, I am relieved that the built up and looming goodbyes have come and gone. Leaving and the trip have always been two completely separate entities for me…leaving meant letting go and saying goodbye to finally follow my dreams and the trip means starting over and searching for life, searching for myself. The thought of leaving and letting go has never affected my thoughts about the trip, negatively or positively; they’ve always been in their own little storage bin in my mind and heart. Now that the goodbyes are over, I feel so strange to be in Sarasota still, even though it’s only for one more night. I feel like the only person standing in a huge empty movie theater, staring at all of the vacant seats. I’ll never see some of these people again, these significant connections in my life. Then some of them I know I’ll see again, and yet again, some of them I’m not so sure. The unknown has always terrified me…especially and most importantly (to me) when it comes to my relationships with the people who mean the world to me. What this trip means to me and my soul can not be put into words. The impact of me deciding to take this trip ended up being and meaning so much more than I had even anticipated. I had no idea just how much personal growth I’d experience leading up to the trip. The hard part is over now and the next part of my journey awaits me, just around the next bend. It came so quickly, June did. And just like that, I’m going, going, gone. I will keep everyone up to date on my travels as often as I can and will sincerely do my best to do so as frequently as possible. Tomorrow we’re leaving to Jacksonville, which will be the last leg of pre-trip plans. Then, we’re off! I can’t believe I’m moving away from Sarasota! And I can’t believe I’m going backpacking through Central and South America for the next four months!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The next time I write in my blog, my feet will be in international soil! Til next time….xoxo

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 12th, 2010 at 5:24 pm and is filed under Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.