In approximately 4 weeks I will be boarding a plane to come back to America. FOUR WEEKS. I don’t even know what to think of that, I feel like just last month I was leaving Chicago for Belgrade and now I have to think about coming home. Questions continue to run through my mind like “am I ready to come home?” I want to come home, but am I ready? I thought leaving for the race was hard, but honestly I think coming home will be even more difficult.
I am excited to see my friends and family, but the Haley that left them a year ago is not the Haley that will be coming home to them. With that being said I wanted to lay out some things for anyone who may be interested in hearing about my year, catching up, hanging out, all the things. First things first, the race has made me more of an introvert than ever before. Yes me, Haley Gritz is now an XSFJ according to my latest Meyers Briggs. I want to lay it out there, most likely when I get home I won’t reach out to you to hang out. This doesn’t mean that I don’t want to see you or want to continue to be friends, it simply means I’ve been intentionally pursuing an upwards of 6+ people at one time for the last year and I’m tired. What would mean the world to me is if you want to hang out and catch up, just ask! I will most likely say yes, I just don’t want to wear myself thin trying to pursue everyone when I get back.
Asking me questions like “how was it?” or “how was your year?” are simply just too broad to answer. I have been through a lot this year and I think when I come home I’ll still be unpacking everything that just happened. Asking more direct questions like “favorite country, what did you do there?” are more attainable to answer. If you ask questions be prepared for the answer, some stuff is harder to hear than a simple “it was good” answer. I’m so excited to share what the lord has done in me, the things I’ve been a part of, the friends I’ve made and all the stories with you but please have grace with me. Understand that I’ve left a part of my heart in every country I’ve gone to and some days I will have to mourn that and others I will want to talk all day long about said month. Some things are hard to put into words and this learning curve isn’t going to end when I come, it’s going to continue and I’m going to need people around me to tell me hard things and to continue to point me towards the Lord.
I may have changed a lot this past year, but so have you! I also want to hear about what’s new in your life. Whether you’re one of my newlywed friends or an old high school friend, you life has drastically changed this year too. I’ve been on Facebook, I see pictures, I know I’m missing out on things and I want to be a part of this new season with you. I’ve had more friends get married in my last two months of my race than I have in MY ENTIRE LIFE. That’s hard for me to miss out on, so tell me about it, show me pictures, anything.
Something I’m leaving behind when I get home is this community I’ve shared my life with for the last year. There are certain people I want to continue to have in my circle of people, I’m not choosing them over you, they just understand to a different degree what I might be going through. You’re my people, and I need community when I come back. I need people more than I even thought and that’s terrifying because that’s giving you a hunting license in my life and trusting you won’t kill me with it. I need people to shake off the lies of the world with. To dig up the roots of the lies and to allow me to do the same in theirs. Change is hard, growth hurts, but I am a better person because of the people I have surrounded myself with, and I don’t want that change to end.
On another note, I have completely forgotten how to speak normal English. Words are hard to say and most of the time aren’t complete sentences. There have been times people start talking to me in English and I don’t acknowledge it because I’m not used to it. When I don’t know how to speak correctly, please feel free to give me the words to say. Also things such as a restroom aren’t called a restroom most places. Terms such as WC (water closet), bathroom and my favorite, simply just toilet. If I’m out in public and I ask where the toilet is, please don’t judge me. It’s all I’ve know the past 6 months.
I’ll see you beautiful people in 4 weeks, until then feel free to reach out, make plans with me, save an extra $6 to take me to chickfila 🙂 LOVES!!!
