Between the Hours

168 hours later, we celebrate with cheers and laughter as we have been in Pangrati for exactly a week. Somewhere in those 168 hours I have taken almost a 1,000 photos. Between Parkland and Pangrati I have truly experienced what it means to have a “home away from home.” I grew up in a neighborhood less than thirty minutes from PLU. After deciding that I wanted to go to college in Parkland, I never felt like I actually left home. However, my freshman year I only traveled to my home for Thanksgiving and Christmas even though I was only 20 miles away. My friends that went to schools on the other side of the mountains would tease me when I “came home” from college. They said it didn’t count as going off to school. I was able to make PLU my community and find a close knit of friends, who I feel as if I have known forever, but there was that something missing.
I had never been out of the country before coming to Greece. When I found out in the spring that I would be attending the Greece J-term course, I was so excited and had so many emotions running through me. My friends were excited for me, but they didn’t understand where I was coming from. Most had traveled and seen different states, unique mountains and even wonderful countries. All while I was raised and educated in the same general proximity. As the end of Winter Break came near, I wasn’t sure what to expect. My friend gave me a Greek guidebook for Christmas and I tried to educate myself as much as I could before leaving. But after arriving, I have found that there wasn’t any amount of preparation that could prepare me for what I am and about to experience. Being off of the PLU campus has given me a chance to stop and question what life truly means to me. For the past few years, I have had my mind set on what my priorities are. But by being absorbed in Pangrati, I now question what really should matter in my life. Although I am pondering life, I don’t hesitate when I say that the past 168 hours have been the best I can recall.