ONE MORE WEEK!!!!!

   What!!!!?????? Yes, this is true in exactly one week from today, I will take a red eye flight to NYC and I will start my exchange with AFS! It is so crazy to think about it because it still doesn't seem real, I mean I haven't even packed my bags yet! I finally got my visa in the mail on Monday and now I can officially stay in Italy for my exchange!

    Since this is possibly my last blog post while I am in Ohio before my exchange I guess I will list what I will miss and what I hope to gain.

Things I will miss:
1) My family- OMG how could I not miss them??? They have been so supportive and I will surely miss them like crazy!

2) My friends- I love all of you and I will miss you and I want you all to make the most out of our senior year!!! (':

3) American food- I will miss you even though you are like my body's worst enemy :p
    And Chipotle I will miss you dearly :(

4) The ease of knowing the language, the food, the school and the culture- I know for sure this is something I should be more grateful for, I never realized how much this should be valued until now, since I am about to take a journey into the unknown.

5) School- Yes, Stivers I will even miss you. Even though this would have been my 6th year there, I realize that it is a really good school and our student body is like a family. I will miss you and even though I am not going to be at graduation will you all, I am so happy I got to be in the greatest class EVER in history, CLASS OF 2014 Stivers School for the ARTS!!! Go Tigers!

Things I hope to gain:
1) A new family that I will be able to connect with for not only this exchange but many years after (hopefully the rest of my life)

2) Fluency in Italian

3) I hope I will become more mature and responsible, I think that this is a perfect way for me to grow up before college!

4) Friends from all over the world that I can rely on and will be able to share experiences with during and after our exchanges!

5) I hope to become more open and accepting to new cultures. (I think it is almost impossible to go on an exchange and not be) I hope that I will come back here to my home and see things from a new, more improved perspective.

6) I hope that I can inspire other people who I come across (or those who come across this blog) to go on an exchange and take that chance to make yourself a BETTER person! Which leads me to my 7th point...

7) I hope that I become an overall better person, than I ever was and with AFS I am confident that this is all possible!

Arrivederci,
Shayla