Day 20: One Heart, Two Worlds

4 August 2014

My Favorite Study Spot

So, I finished my first week of Uni and started the second one! So far I’ve gotten to all my classes semi on time, watched “Frozen” at JCU’s Amphitheater, gone to countless bible studies and hosted numerous movie nights, roasted marshmallows and tasted Chinese “desert soup” and calamari. This weekend I went to a rugby game. (We won - 28 to 8, Go Cowboys!)  

Frozen!!!!

 My how times have changed since I first stepped foot in Australia.  Aussie accents seem normal, wallaby sightings are everyday life, and navigating JCU’s expansive campus is a breeze most days. (I still get lost occasionally.) Even my roommates don’t seem as daunting as they did a week ago. New friends seem like old friends, and somehow I’ve come to the realization that this is my life, and I actually like it. Something I never thought would happen. If you had told me a month ago that I would actually be okay in a country other than America (as some of you did) I wouldn’t have believed you. Yet, here I am, not even an entire month later, living on my own and it isn’t as terrible as I previously thought. Each day I miss my family more, but each day I love Australia a little more than I did the day before and I become more attached to the people I’ve built friendships with in the past few weeks. I wonder how it’ll be in 119 days to leave all this. 

Rugby Game

Now I know you’re saying, “Live in the moment, don’t think about it.” But the fact is, I’m not staying here forever. One day I get to go back home. The problem is that this has become home. Maybe not the one with my brothers and sisters or where I took my baby pictures. But this is home in the sense that it’s where I did a lot of growing up in a short amount of time. It’s where I put my faith to the test and found that God was big enough. It’s the place where I felt like I gave up my entire life to go and was rewarded more than I ever dreamed. I guess Miriam Adney was right, “You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart always will be elsewhere. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place.” 

BonFires & Friends

But even if my life is about to go through major changes all over again in just a few short months, I know it’ll be okay. When the time comes I’ll be ready. The same God that got me to Australia is the same God that will help me transition back to America. Until then, I’ll enjoy the time I have in this amazing country and make enough memories to last a lifetime.