Midyear Seminar and more!

As many of you know, language camp was basically the best month of my life. I spent my first month in an American bubble with teamers, teachers, and other exchange students who hugged me and made me laugh. However, I was not ready for the amount of joy and sadness that midyear seminar would bring. First off, I would like to say that today is my 6 month mark which means I only have 5 months until I am back on USA soil. Realizing this fact has made me want to cram as much travel, adventure, and learning into my last months. On the train to midyear I was really calm, and I don't think I had totally grasped the fact that I was going to hug all of my friends again. Once I walked through the youth hostel's door, at least 30 people came toward me and wrapped me in tons of hugs! It felt amazing to be hugged, to have my hair played with, and even to speak English. Three of the teamers from language camp made reappearances at midyear, and there presence was amazing. Not only do I look up to them, but I also really enjoy talking to them and hearing their advice.

On my first night I just enjoyed seeing everyone, had some dinner, and then had a short group meeting in an upstairs room. By day two I had spoken more English than I have spoken in months. In fact, there was a point in the second day where I attempted to tell one of my friends something in English but forgot what words to use, so instead I had to speak German to get my idea across! That made me really happy and feel a lot more confident in my learning progress. On the second evening we went into Bonn, went to a history museum, and got to have free time for dinner. I found my first Mexican restaurant in Germany, and it actually was pretty good. I also stopped by the Haribo store, and was amazed at the number of items you can buy there. On day three we worked in small groups and played games together. Not only did I keep my small group from language camp, but also one of my my favorite teamers was my small group leader, so our meetings were filled with laughter and good memories. We walked into the small town center and enjoyed a huge snowball fight. Then, of course, I slipped in the ice two times in a row and had to walk back to the hostel in soaking wet clothes where I then tripped over a table and was safely escorted to the large meeting room. We promptly got into our pajamas and played a hug scavenger hunt game throughout the hostel. Because it was our last night with each other, I stayed awake until 4:00 am talking to my favorite teamers and some of my friends. We played Uno, and then slept for about 3.5 hours. I was actually still excited to wake up at 7:30, but I have never been so sad to say goodbye. It was so amazing to see everybody, and the closer we got to leaving the more I felt like crying. Saying goodbye took a long time, and I hugged everybody multiple times. 

Riding home was also hard because I wanted to stay with my amazing second family so much! Once I got home I was so exhausted from the lack of sleep as well as the emotional goodbyes, and I promptly fell into bed. I still miss my big, awkward exchange family, but feeling their love and support and hearing their stories made me feel much more confident and happy. I can't wait to see them again, and I truly believe that they will always hold a place in my heart as my strange family of puzzle pieces that are all different but somehow fit perfectly. 

I will definitely be posting more pictures as soon as I download them, so never fear. Also, I would really appreciate it if all of you could sign this petition: http://savecbyx.org/  My program is facing budget cuts which means that less kids will be allowed to go in the next coming years. I really want this program to continue sending as many kids as possible. It has done so much for me, and I truly believe I am a stronger and better person because of it. Please help save CBYX and allow other kids to experience this life-changing adventure!