We're heading back home tomorrow and there are some things I'm definitely not ready for. Once again, I doubt I'll know how to convey to the people back home how much of an impact the trip had on me, and I'll probably speak to some people who will never understand why I feel the way I do. I'll have to do my laundry and watch the entire trip fly past my eyes as I wash dirt and saw dust off of my clothing, remembering the events that put them there. I'll walk into my hallway the first morning of school and be astonished to find that there isn't a line of 5 people waiting to use the bathroom, and I won't have bunk mates to talk to before bed at night. The service learning trips always feel like an eternity, because you would never expect to make so many personal changes or friendships in so little time. Yes, I'm excited to go home to my loving family and tell them all about the trip, but I also can't wait until we go back to school so I can see my second family together again.

- Ally Waxman