No Normality

I've had this post idea for a while, but I'm just now getting around to writing it, so here we go.

Twelve days ago was the absolute halfway point of my time in Germany. I had been here for fifty-five days and I had fifty-five days remaining. Now the numbers are at sixty-three and forty-eight. Eek.

It's incredibly weird to think that over two months ago I was freaking out about coming here. Each day on my TimeHop app, new posts are pulled up regarding my anticipation and nervousness regarding this semester as I choose my location, program, and semester, and then began to sort out details. Back then my mental image of what this semester was going to look like was completely blank. And within a matter of about forty-eight hours after I arrived, it was filled in.

It's insane how quickly you can adjust to such a drastic change. Every day that I'm here, I have to remind myself that where I am is not normal for me, even though it seems like it. When I'm riding the U-Bahn or walking to class, it feels natural and normal, but it's not. All of this is only temporary. I'm only here for about three and a half months. This is only a small quick period in my life and yet it feels so overwhelmingly long and large.

I've wanted to write this post for a while, and meant to do it in the first few weeks. Now, when I'm getting around to it, I'm more than halfway in, and this last month and a half will go racing by. I leave in two days for my spring break. When I return to Berlin, my parents will be here. Once they depart, I go to Hamburg. Afterwards, my grandfather and his wife are also visiting. Potentially after that, other friends are visiting, and I may travel to Dresden or Poland. And fitted between all of this are my classes, excursions, papers, presentations, finals, birthday parties, picnics, and everyday life.

These last forty three days are going to FLY, so here's to making each and every day matter, and allowing nothing to be normal.

Prost, Berlin! Let's make it count. 43 days and counting.