Things I'm Going to Miss

I'm in Panama!  Details to come, but before jumping into that I wanted to share a quick post I wrote a few days ago.  There are a lot of people and things that it's been hard to say goodbye to, but I am so incredibly excited to be here and cannot wait to begin my Panamanian life!

My Friends and Family.

I am so blessed to have incredible friends and family who love and support me (Sorry to those of you not in the photos- there were too many to fit!) and I will miss them terribly.  I can't wait to share my adventures with them, especially the ones that are heading south to visit! Better start practicing your Spanish, mis amigos.   

My Dogs.

I was raised in a dog loving family, and it's hard for me to imagine life without one of our furry, fun loving companions by my side.  Since two of our three dogs are in their golden years, this goodbye is going to be especially hard.  When thinking about saying goodbye to them the other day, I actually started to tear up.  And yes, I will definitely be that volunteer- the one that constantly adopts the strays.  Panamanian pups, I'm coming for you!

Driving.

I love having the freedom to go where I want, when I want, and I especially love my car.  Since we're not allowed to drive any vehicles while serving in Panama, it'll likely be two years until the next time I can pick up the keys and go for a drive.  

The Ability to Access Any Type of Food I Want.

Egyptian, Chick-fil-a, homemade cheesecake... ahh.  I'm definitely going to miss the variety of foods that are easily accessible in America, but I am looking forward to trying out some new ones.  I'm making it a personal goal to never say no to a food I haven't tried, but a current volunteer warned me that that goal would probably change when my village serves chicken feet.  yum.  

Fall. 

I love everything about fall- colorful leaves, perfect weather, seasonal foods, so knowing that I won't see it again until 2015 is a little sad.  But hey, at least I get to live in the tropics for the next 2 and a half years.

Tennessee.

During high school I couldn't wait to get out of Tennessee, but as much as I love traveling and new places, I just really, really love the Volunteer state.  We have incredible natural resources, good food, sweet people, and overall pretty good weather.  Tennessee just has such a balance, and that's something I'm definitely going to miss.  But hey, Panama is still looking pretty dang awesome.