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A study abroad program. A month long trip with a non-profit organization. A retreat. A vacation. A holiday. There’s a million ways that I could try and fail to summarize the past 3 weeks that I spent in Ireland. Just ask the man at the customs desk in the London airport. “Life changing” evidently doesn’t fly in Heathrow, even though that’s exactly what it was.

I know that I’m being cheesier than my maw maw’s macaroni but, after a few hiccups in my daily life, from job changes to relationship status edits, my first international journey could not have come at a better time.

Over the course of 3 weeks, in association with the wonderful people at Direction For Our Times, my cousin and I were able to stay in Cavan while we galavanted all over Dublin, Knock, Galway, and back again. The people that we stayed with were so unnecessarily kind and accommodating that I was honestly caught off guard and might have gotten a little swept away in the magic of it all.

Somehow even more magical than the scenery were the people that I met who became fast but true friends. One of those friends, in fact, is the reason that I’m even writing this post.

Nothing will compare to actually experiencing my time in Ireland but, for the sake of wanting to post pictures and try to relive it, I plan on posting bit by bit summaries of the best summer vacation I have ever had.

I’ll save sentimentalities for later because, trust me, there were and will be plenty. To keep it short and sweet I’ll leave you with a song that my new friend recommended to me.

The funniest part about this trip was realizing just how many meanings the word “home” can have. I thought I knew for sure when I left exactly where my home was, where I belonged, and who I belonged with. I knew where I was leaving and so I certainly knew where I was going back to. I talked about life back home most of the time that I was away from it. I already knew that you can never really leave home but, little by little, I realized that you can’t fully take it with you either. There’s a piece of my heart that got left behind, somewhere between Bundoran and the Cliffs of Moher probably, although Glendalough was particular beautiful as well, but more importantly there’s so many things that I get to keep with me forever now.

I’m so excited to share with y’all all of the things I’ve seen and learned and, if anything, just give you a little glimpse of the most beautiful country I’ve ever seen. Expect a follow up soon!