The moment I’ve been waiting for since October 2011. Am I being overly dramatic? Probably. But after reading two years’ worth of SoS blog entries, finally being able to create my own post is a momentous occasion. Funny thing is, after ruminating on the sort of things that I would write (witty? tear-jerking? inspirational? all of the above?), now that I have finally brought myself to type something up, I’m not quite sure what to say.
In fact, words cannot express how excited I am about this trip. For the past few months, I have found my thoughts wandering from “Quantitative Methods” (a.k.a. Psych Stats, i.e. the bane of my existence), Dean’s Date papers, and the hustle and bustle of a busy spring semester to blurred visions of a city on the other side of the world. Although I have seen photos that previous SoS-ers have taken on their trips (yes, I stalked those as well), and despite the fact that I have read numerous accounts of past experiences in China, I realize that nothing I have seen or read can prepare me for what I will encounter this summer. Sure, I know about the much-beloved bubble tea at 7Cup, and I have a pretty good idea of what the classrooms I’ll be teaching in look like. Ultimately, though, I am mentally preparing myself to just “go with it,” whatever “it” may be.
This hasn’t stopped me from looking forward to what might unfold over the next few months. I can’t wait to get to know each and every one of my students, and I hope that by the end of SoS’s stay in Jishou they will feel as if they have gleaned something from our lessons, and from our interactions with them. Similarly, I hope to learn something about Chinese culture from my students; time to put my Chinese textbook to the test…
Also, I can’t wait to bond with the wonderful group of SoS-ers venturing to China with me. Even before embarking on our most excellent adventure, I feel as if I have forged connections with each and every member of the group. Jessica and I clicked instantly; we had a wonderful time brainstorming for our textbook lessons, and I can’t wait to show her around Rome after China. I’m excited about practicing my warrior poses and chaturangas with Miryam, who takes yoga classes at the same yoga studio that I go to (hi Gemma!) Arianna is the only other international student in the group, so I’m looking forward to having a partner with whom to offer a non-American perspective to our students. Kelsey and I share an aversion to house centipedes (with which we’ve both had some close calls), and an interest in East Asian cultures. Christian and I are both Mathey-ites, and apparently complete each other (he is the car to my deer in the headlights…whatever that means). Reuben and I are both newbie members of the same eating club, and he once used me as a human croquet mallet, which definitely made for some good bonding. Nick and I were on Club Swimming together last year, and our high schools have the same name, despite the fact that one is in Rome while the other is in Texas. Alyssa and I bonded over whiteout and filling out visa application forms – slightly less interesting than using one another as human croquet mallets, but one must never underestimate the power of whiteout.
Last but not least, I can’t wait to get to know our trip leaders (a.k.a. Camelot). Cameron and I both share a love of Chinese (mad props to him for taking 文言文 next year), and our birthdays are fairly close together (yay Leos!) Eliot is more on the quiet side, and likes photography, which I am passionate about as well – I look forward to seeing some of the photos that he takes on this trip. Camelot seem to get along very well, despite their different personalities; I have the feeling that Cameron’s penchant for eloquent speech and Eliot’s reticence and wry sarcasm will “keep things real.”
I should probably end here, since Eliot said not to go too crazy with the blogging (oops). Having said pretty much everything that I would have liked to say in a first blog post, I will close with a phrase that I am rather fond of:
see you on the other side!
– Sofia