This is the end of the line for me. I now write from the shores of California and the heat of its inland city, Riverside. Home has pulled me back to reality and torn me away from the land I grew to love.
My last few weeks in New Zealand were covered in much quality time with the people I would miss greatly. It boiled down to the little moments we had together and how grand they could be just through the company of each other. Countless hours were spent talking, laughing, and just soaking up each others presence.
The goodbyes we had to make were so many that it seemed like they would never end. For a solid week my heart was losing one person after the next - and by the end, I became overwhelmed with the emotions. Shutting down, each goodbye got easier and easier; until the plane fight home. As soon as I settled in my window seat, I looked out at the country I gained a love for and I cried. I felt as though the person inside me was kicking and screaming as she was being forced away from a place she wasn't ready to leave. I hadn't prepared myself for this reality, and it hit me hard.
The memories live inside me, and not a day goes by that I don't reminisce on my time in New Zealand. Being home is not bad - but having to end something that was so grand is what tears my heart up. As my life has to continue on ward, I will always carry with me the lessons and love I learned while being in NZ. The relationships I have created through this time will continue on, and the unique bonds I formed will never lose importance.
While goodbye came too soon for me, the dream I lived remains present in my daily life here in California, and always will.
