The Weekend and The Email

This weekend I went to San Antonio to meet Trent. A little bit of background, without getting too personal/emotional. Trent was my boyfriend for my first year and a half of College. Due to his being in the military, my travels and both our impending departures; him for Afghanistan and me for the Peace Corp, we have been in and out of each other’s lives. We have been saying "good bye" for about two years now, but just keep seeing each other again. This weekend in San Antonio was the real one, with me leaving for Samoa in two weeks and his deployment in March. He was testing for their fire department so I drove up to spend the weekend with him. From the very beginning we both knew that our futures were headed in opposite directions. Goodbye may have been easier if we never got together, or if we had stayed away when we broke up a year ago, but I also would have missed out on some great memories. It was an awesome weekend and we had a blast watching the OU game, drinking too much, and laughing a lot. It was hard to say good bye, but I know that we will always be in each others lives; it’s just the capacity that changes. My love, my prayers and thoughts will be with him in Afghanistan. It’s time for us both to start our adventures and I feel so blessed for the times we have had together. Another hard good bye and I know there are more to come. This weekend I complete my tour de Texas with a trip to Dallas to say good bye to my college roommates and the other legs of my tripod, Emily and Sabrina. After that it’s going to be saying good bye to my mom and my sisters. I know it will be hard but I am feeling much better about my goodbyes, or as I like to think my "see you laters." I received an extraordinary email this weekend from Jane, mother of Paul 81. She read my recent blog post describing anxiety over leaving people, and wrote to me about her experiences from the other side. This wonderful email inspired tears, laughter, and a lot of faith. She described to me how the space can actually strengthen relationships not dim them and how although it will be tough, the new relationships I make will be just as extraordinary as those I have at home. Thank you so much Jane, because of you I picture spectacular night skies, diving on the reef, and a new family waiting for me. I can’t say I’m any less nervous, but I can say my excitement has tripled. The mix of emotions is just indescribable, only 14 more days. WOW!

Trent and I and his Basic Training Graduation

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