By vgosalvez11
Yup, I am still not gone yet. I have become convinced that I am the only one left not in school or at my study abroad. While many of my friends were rushing to order textbooks or trying to cram a last pair of shoes into a carry-on bag, Chile still felt like a far-off dream to me.
To be honest, it still feels kind of like a far-off dream. I leave in three days, and then my program orientation officially starts two days after that. After that, it is a week of orientation, and then I don't even start classes until the first week of March. This is definitely an unconventional schedule, as I won't be done with finals until early July, rather than early May. Due to the fact that Chilean students are currently celebrating their Summer Vacation on the other side of the equator, they will be starting their fall semester in March rather than August.
These last weeks have been both restful and difficult; I am starting to get my first taste of something I know I will deal with all throughout my semester . . . FOMO. As many of my friends can tell you, I am practically the poster-child for Fear Of Missing Out.
Without being sappy, I can say that I love GW. I love my friends there, and I also love the activities and clubs I am involved in as much as I love DC. Okay, you got me . . . obviously, I don't love late nights in Gelman, but generally I have a lot of fun.
I have known since I applied to the Study Abroad program that I would struggle with the "Fear Of Missing Out" all semester, and these last few weeks have been no exception. I was lucky enough to attend an Alternative Winter Break to El Paso, Texas, and hang out in DC for a week for the inauguration, but since then I have been hanging out in good old rural Pembroke, Massachusetts. Seeing my friends celebrate birthdays, hanging out in DC, and yes, even suffering in Gelman, has been difficult; especially knowing that I have an extra-long time until my semester is finished.
The good news (and I know this about myself) is that I can create strategies to combat this dreaded FOMO. As I get ready to head to South America, I think the best option for me is to try and really integrate myself and fully experience life as a student in Santiago. Given that I try to fill my time with a full course-load, several student organizations on campus, and a 20-hour work week, I feel that involving myself in extra-curricular activities with Chilean students is the best way to feel fully-involved and not miss my life at GW.
That being said, I am doing my best to stay in contact with my friends in DC. Being present and integrated in my study abroad experience does not have to mean forgetting about my friends and the things I love in DC. So in my (hopefully) limited free time, I am hoping to keep up regular Skype dates with all my favorite people in the US. I know myself, and I know that I get FOMO, but I also know that it isn't going to stop me from fully integrating myself in my study abroad experience and Chilean culture in general. So now that I am FINALLY so close to leaving, I am pushing through and getting prepared
Despite how far away it felt not too long ago . . . things are starting to get real. AKA I am starting to get very anxious about all the packing I should be getting done.
I have been looking up packing lists and trying to keep things light, but I am supposedly dealing with everything from the beach to the ski slopes in Chile—and I am a notorious over-packer. I know, putting it off will do me little good, but the next time I will post I will be in 90-degree weather in Santiago, rather than snowed-in during a blizzard in Massachusetts . . . assuming I can get out of Logan airport with this snow...Wish me luck!