This is my last week in Costa Rica and I am not ready to leave. I am excited to go to a new country, but so sad to leave the friends and memories here. So here’s a farewell letter to one of the most amazing countries in the world.
Dear Costa Rica,
Man did you wreck me good. I remember the moment we landed and how excited I was to finally be able to be in a new culture and be able to just breathe. Asia was amazing, but spending three months feeling spiritually heavy completely drains you. Malaysia was a hard country to be in and we had to say goodbye to 5 amazing people in New York. Coming to the base and being able to have a comfortable bed and a place to call home for three months was exactly what I needed. You just might be my favourite country on the race.
To Turrucares, thank you for your open arms and welcoming hearts. You let me love some of the most precious little children, paint beautiful classrooms, go on spontaneous adventures, and learn the importance of being able to be flexible with whatever we planned for the day. We never knew when we would get a call telling us to change our clothes and be ready to jump in a car in the next 10 minutes. I learned how to communicate through art and how fun it was to allow kids to just paint their hearts out. Your beautiful church community showed me what it felt like to just be loved for who I was and not what I was doing. I will never forget you and the love you showed. Dear Turrucares, I love you.
To La Montana, thank you for all the fun memories, hard lessons, new beginnings and new friends. You taught me the importance of constantly looking at life through a higher perspective and facing our biggest fears. I spent a total of 24 days up in these mountains and I never realized how much I was going to miss this place until I was already back at the base. We met some of the most amazing people at your camp and felt the fire that the Lord is setting on the youth here. I’ll never forget the late nights spent playing games and laughing our heads off. I made friendships here that will last a lifetime. I also had the privilege of spending my halfway debrief here where I learned the importance of letting things go (aka: writing everything I am mad at on a rock and chucking them all off a cliff). A lesson that will forever change the direction of how I view life. Dear La Montana, I love you.
To my Ticos, I have dreaded this goodbye since we said our first see you laters. The major reason this country has been so amazing is the fact that we have been able to meet you guys and to invite you into our everyday lives. Thank you for all the fun adventures, answering all of our “how do you say this” questions, and just being willing to spend time with a bunch of gringas. You have brought so much wisdom and encouragement into my life and I can’t thank you guys enough for that. You guys have made Costa Rica feel like home and have brought so much life into my race. You’ve taught me the value of friendship and how amazing it is to have a family away from home. To my lovely Ticos, te quiero mucho.
Costa Rica, you are a beautiful country full of amazing and wonderful people. I’ve had a lot of ups and downs here but every second has been worth it. You remind me of home so much and maybe one day this will become my home. Thank you for everything you’ve taught me and your amazing coffee. I love you so much and I can’t imagine my race without you.
Sincerely,
Lillian Son
p.s. Ecuador, you have no idea what’s about to hit you.
