Two and seventeen.

Those are the magic numbers as of 11:21AM GMT+2, Wednesday, November 24th, 2010. Two days until I say goodbye to Pretoria and hello to Swaziland and seventeen days until I say hello to America and everyone I love (give or take a few days).

My time here has been everything I wanted and (this makes sense in my mind) more and less. It’s hard to believe that after my last exam (they call finals exams here and mid-terms are tests) on Friday, I will have just a few hours in Pretoria before a bus full of people I don’t yet know whisks me away to Swaziland where I will be volunteering in the town of Belembu for two weeks. My fellow Sooners/Americans Brooke and Madison left almost a week ago and with the exception of Carmen and some others, most of the other international students have left as well. It’s hard to believe, actually. Everyone has these analogies but it really does seem like just recently all the exchange students were meeting each other and having our first braai. It also doesn’t seem like our trip to Durban was three months ago and our attempt at Swaziland and epic spring break were months ago.

Brooke and Madison are home, and while I’d like to be, I definitely don’t want to be at the same time. I feel like I have unfinished business here (and I’m fairly certain those feelings aren’t from finals and having signed up for Swazi). I’m someone who can’t sit still. Long and short term. I want to go home but am also so excited for next semester in Turkey. After that I have two years at OU that I plan on enjoying thoroughly. I’m getting more homesick and more comfortable here at the same time. Walking on the right hand side of the sidewalk feels wrong now. Seriously, I tried it today and my brain was like “Wait. What are you doing? What, what, what are you doing?” I’m used to walking everywhere and have adopted “Howzit,” “is it,” “as well,” (instead of too) and other mannerisms like a thumbs up as a greeting and am getting better at the extended handshakes people like to give here (I’ll shake your hand like a South African when I see you in ‘Murrica). There’s the deeper cultural stuff that I’m also accustomed to now but I’d rather tell you about that in person.

I have learned so much here, but I’d like to share all the good, deep things with you all in person when I get back. Even though I already have blogged about some of them before. If you’re reading this, I want to see you when I get back. If you’re not, I want to as well. I start packing today. Packing? Really? That doesn’t seem right. Granted it’s not to get on a plane, but I will probably never see this room again. It just seems weird. Other things that are weird: the weather here is becoming increasingly Oklahoman. Big storms and cloud cover. It’s summer and the rainy season but South Africa seems to want to have its transitions to try and re-acclimate me to Oklahoma weather. I’m fine with that.

I’m sorry this post was short and jumpy, but I’m sleep deprived from finals and my thoughts are going everywhere in preparing for Swazi and going home. This will probably be my last post until February. See you in 17 days or just a few more? Good.