holes in my socks and 'th's on my 's's

with the summer months quickly approaching i find myself in a constant whirlwind of contradictions. while some of the last 10 months crawled by, others zipped, and now i face a little under two months to 'wrap up' this abroad experience. as i have started to think about my journey back to the glorious place i call home, it is clear that preparing for my 'despedida' (farewell) will be much more than packing up my suitcase; it will be saying 'hasta luego' to a different life. how can i explain how daily life in this city, in this country, with a culture and language that are not my own, has become so normal? little things such as, lighting my stove with a match, to buying groceries based on how much i can carry home, interacting (speaking spanish) with people from multiple countries daily, cooking dinner at 9:30pm, ordering a beer (for less than 2 euros!) with a free plate of food, and picnic-ing at moorish castles are all amazingly normal and are done without much thought. when i ask the waitress for a 'cafe con leche' (coffee with milk) i say, 'gracias' with the andalusian (southern spanish) accent, pronounced, 'grath-i-ath'. but, it is so much more than that. this place has become my home, and this has become my life. most importantly, i am different because of this life.

yet, much of me longs for my home-home and the distinct opportunities that the united states offers. the holes in my socks and dwindling amount of american coffee sitting on my cupboard stand as little indicators that whisper 'it is time to go home.' the truth is when i think of being back in the states, surrounded by the people i love, my heart soars and i can't help but be elated by the idea. suddenly, thoughts of cayucos (my ultimate comfort place), hugs and snuggling with family and friends, stores that stay open between the hours of 2 and 6, and a school system that actually makes sense, are soon to be my new reality. going back to my life before granada is such a blessing, but saying goodbye to this is undoubtedly going to be tough.
so, until that time comes, i am going to take time every day to do something unique to granada life whether it be watching the sun set over the city or ordering a tapa with a friend after class, because at this point, what will help the most is knowing that i truly savored this year as much as possible and that it is now forever a part of me.