just a second

Having a memory.
On the road to Alabama from California. Me and Brynnie and Momma had just gotten across the Arkansas border and with the goal of making it to Memphis by dark, stopped for a 15 min rest at the Welcome Center, just as the sky opened up and it went from just overcast skies to an incredibly heavy downpour. We wandered the Welcome Center that was newly built and smelled like eucalyptus wood. Then we walked out the back into a covered porch, sat down in some rocking chairs and watched the rain fall down hard tapping the leaves of every tree, bush and vine of the lush, overgrown forest surrounding us. The sweet aroma of wet nature reached our noses. It smelled like the South. It sounded like the South. I could hear the cicadas' nonstop chirp even over the rain. The nearly oppressive August humidity was not so bad as the clouds had made the heat subside a bit.

It makes me want to cry. I love the South. I love the beginning of the school year. I love what has become my home for the past three years. Man, I don't want to leave it.

But, haha. Here I am in South America. This place is fabulous, too. And I'm always going to have a piece of this city, this country, in my heart.

And in a month, I'll get to spend a couple weeks with my family. Nearly cried today thinking about being able to hug my momma after not seeing her for five months. I miss California, too. So much.

And why is it that even when I'm somewhere incredible my heart longs for home? For both my homes. I'm so happy with my life.






In other news....
I like, pretty much love him

this is how it works

[picture of the casa central of my school as the sun goes down]

In a colectivo this morning I heard "On the Radio" by Regina Spektor. Dude, I never even hear reggie on the radio (ha) in the US... I mean I guess I don't listen to a TON of radio but yeah... anyways I was super excited to hear her sweet little voice and wanted to tell the colectivo driver that omg i love this song! but i mean i don't think he would have cared too much haha.
We had our despedida dinner last night... what da hayyck? how can this semester actually be coming to an end? some people actually leave next week. I am happy I get to chill (um, like....literally) a little bit longer, although I have

been thinking about home an awful lot lately. Anyways the dinner was good! I had salad dressing for the first time in three months. Caesar salad dressing at that. So good. And the chocolate mousse was also exquisite. Part of the presentation made by the ISA staff said that all of us will be leaving here different people. I think it's true. I'm not even really sure in what aspects I am different, but I know I am. I might be bolder now. I might have less fear. I might be more chill about things. Maybe..haha. I think I see now that I don't have to be scared of what's coming ahead, like there's only one way to live my life successfully. I think I see that life is going to come, and there might be scary parts. It might be scary that I'm not sure what I'm going to do forever, where I'll end up, what I'll end up loving. The doubt is scary, but now I see that it doesn't have to be. What an adventure to live life and not know what's going to happen next. That every turn is a surprise. That I have the potential to do what I want. What an adventure to have a whole exciting life ahead of me and know that I'm not powerful enough to mess up any plans that He has made for me.

Some of the last few adventures...

the view from the top of cerro santa lucia in santiago

playing chess in the plaza de armas, santiago

blurry but i like it... on the night bus to La Serena

feeding the birds in la plaza de armas, La Serena.

So in other news.... It continues to be freezing.

Bailando asi....

Yo
So I'm up late writing some essays and jazz....

I like to listen to songs that play a lot here and I hear people listening to (in Spanish obviously) and when I start hearing the lyrics when I hear them around, I feel like... happy for starters, that I hear it. But then I feel like, I get something a bit more. I don't really know exactly what it is I get. But I think about Chilean friends or just the people I see taking the micro or hanging out in Casa Central and I think ha- this is what you hear and understand perfectly.

Weird observation that probably just Brett Louise Bralley understands.

Oh, and I'm going through a phase where I like, really like reggaeton haha. Knew it was bound to happen. I'll put pictures up when my camera's not dead.

writing since i never write...

Am I the only one who writes the date wrong all the time because she honestly can´t remember what month we´re in? And also still can´t get used to the fact that she´s in 2008? I swear, every time I want to say I´m in January or February (I guess that is probably because I´m living in the winter) and I think there have been several times I write 07 and realize, oh... Also I always write the date in "spanish." so there.

anyways, besides the fact that i suck at writing the date and my internal clock that knows when she's living is screwed up, everything is good.

school is kind of getting crazy. the one crazy week i'll probably have all semester so i shouldn't complain, jeje. have two essays, a presentation and an interview to shoot and edit for my journalism class. so fun.

although this might not be interesting to people i feel like my spanish is on the border of becoming like, really good. like i think a lot when i use certain grammar and i still mess up on the most basic things... but like dangit i'm close! haha. i miss home a lot and my family and school in alabama... but like, if i had just a little more time i could picture another semester really doing some good.

I'm off to La Serena y Valle elqui this fin de semana. With Andy and a few others. Should be delightful... I hope we check out the observatory and the penguins (ermmm omg...) haha if they are there. Gotta check my guide book for that.

Chile is still pretty sweet. I love riding the bus and watching people, and listening to their conversations now that I can understand a lot more. People are just cool in general.