Goodbye VSA

It was hard saying goodbye to VSA today. It is hard to believe that I am most likely not going to meet all  of these wonderful students again. My friends and I had spent most of the morning cherishing our memories and spilling tears. We talked about the first impressions we had of each other, and how we bonded overtime. 

After breakfast, everyone in my proctor slowly trickled out; there were only a couple of us remaining from my proctor group. We were supposed to leave earlier, but our van did not arrive until later. This created an even more sullen environment because the hallways seemed very empty.

We left Vanderbilt around 12:30. We went to Opry Mills Mall for the last time, which helped brighten our day. We had lunch there- I ate pizza from a restaurant called The Villa. We also did a little more shopping; luckily, I had plenty of extra space in my luggage. I also ended up meeting one of my classmate's from VSA who lives in Nashville We talked about how it felt weird not wearing our VSA lanyards around our necks- which we had become so accustomed to.

After the mall, we headed straight to the airport. Because we arrived early, we had the opportunity to go to one of the gift shops in the airport. I bought a hoodie that says Nashville, Tennessee to serve as a reminder of my trip.

I did not enjoy the plane ride. I felt really sick; plus it was extremely cold in the airplane. We had a layover at Chicago for about thirty minutes. During the thirty minutes, Chiamaka, Shanti, and I took silly pictures of each other. It helped the time go faster, and it made us all laugh. Our flight arrived in Oakland about half an hour late. I was extremely excited to see my family. My dad, uncle, and brother came to pick me up. When I arrived home, my mom and grandmother were waiting at the door. It felt great to see their smiling faces, which I hadn't seen for almost a month. I am happy to be back home, but I also miss my family back at Vanderbilt. Within just three weeks, I developed a close relationship with my proctor, my instructors, and my friends. It feels as though just yesterday I had arrived at Vanderbilt, and now I am already back!