The Difference A Day Makes

There are no more weeks, only days. The thought struck me immediately as I awoke this morning, and yet I still can not fully process that I will be in Scotland very, very soon. As usual, crucial details have been left to the last screeching second, but I don't think any amount of preparation would make me feel as if everything is taken care of.

I sent about twenty responses to Gumtree ads for flats today, and have received exactly zero responses. Meanwhile, the ad I put up last night has almost a hundred page views, but the only feedback I've gotten are from males I probably don't want to live with. I guess that's what happens when one of the photos you put up is a (quite modest, really) bathing suit shot. Truthfully of all my recent pictures, I found it difficult to find any where I wasn't in a swimsuit. That alone makes this summer one for the books. By my calculation, I have spent more time at the beach or in my pool than any other summer in my entire life— and I have the Coppertone girl tan lines to prove it.

Some of my more significant sun days were spent in La Habana just a few weeks ago. I won't get into all the details of my trip, but it was very important to me. Despite my reservations, I am completely grateful for the experience. I went with my dad and sister, which is rare in itself, since it's usually my mom who jets off with us (usually to her home country of Ecuador) while daddy holds down the fort. The vacation was wonderful, but I really wanted to have fun for my dad. The whole purpose of the trip was for me to connect with his family, whom I had never met, and his roots which are, of course, also mine.

My dad, who has been quietly melancholy about my nearing departure, was only concerned with us having a great time, more than enjoying himself, and even more than sharing his time (and the many gifts we all lugged over) with his remaining family members in Cuba.

One night, surrounded by oscillating fans at all speeds, we got to talking about how he left his home, how it all happened so quickly, and the life he may have never had if this hadn't happened. I'd drawn the parallels before from both my parents, and am always left marveling at how a life unfolds, and how beautiful it looks in retrospect. I am optimistic about what the future holds, but my father couldn't get past how stressful life has become, and how he is still a simple person at heart, longing for a simple life. It hurts to leave him this way.

The circumstances of my parents' moves and my own are very different, except for the fact that where we go and what we do will change our lives entirely as we know them.

So, six days to go and am I prepared for take off? Not entirely. But there is a part of me that has been ready and waiting.

Varadero Beach