Pre Departure

I am officially boarding a plane to go to Ireland in five days. I thought just last week I still had months to wait? Time flies.

My thoughts have been everywhere the past week. I don’t know if it’s the same for everyone else, but nothing ever really seems real until it’s actually here. So ever since April, I’ve known I will be overseas by the end of July, but it never felt as true as it does now. I’ve been thinking non stop about it for a long time now, trying to figure out every little detail, like the itinerary, how to get there, how long to be there, and addresses of every castle imaginable. 

The questions I get asked most frequently are if I think I’ll get homesick, or if I’m scared to go, and every answer I gave was no. I was talking to a good friend of mine about this, and he told me he left for seminary after 8th grade, and didn't get homesick because how much he loved what he was doing. I feel like that’s exactly what’ll happen to me too. Of course I’ll miss my family and friends, but I think I’ll be so absorbed in the experience I’ll forget to feel like I’m missing out back here. 

This past week though I did start second guessing my answers, I started to worry what if I don’t like it and I’m stuck there for over four weeks? I was able to push that thought out of my mind soon after though, and now all that’s left is my excitement to be there and immerse myself in every possible opportunity I’ll receive while there. You’d be surprised how many people I’ve talked to that have been to Ireland. Every single person I’ve talked to that has though, also didn’t have one bad thing to say about the trip, I’ve only heard about how green it is and how nice the people are. So this only adds on to my thrill to get there already.

I’ve decided after how many times I’ve been asked to take a lot of pictures, that I’ll be filming most of my trip to put into short videos so everyone can follow along with how it’s all going. I personally can’t wait and am getting more and more antsy with every second that passes. 

I have my beautiful cousin’s wedding this Saturday, and will board the plane the next day. I’ll keep you all updated from there. Enjoy the rest of your week everyone.

Also, this past week a man named Brian Bergkamp, a seminarian from the Wichita Diocese, died while saving a woman in the Arkansas River. Please pray for him, his family, and his friends.