Today I’m thrilled to be over at Velvet Ashes, a lovely online community designed to encourage women serving overseas. The founder and editor graciously invited me to share about the topic of hindsight, and more specifically, to answer the question “What do you wish you knew then (before going overseas) that you know now?”
Ignorant and naive are two words that would fairly describe me as I packed my two suitcases in preparation for a semester abroad in Africa.
I was giddy, excited, and completely ignorant.
Oh, and I wasn’t even 21.
The biggest issues looming at the forefront of my mind were whether I should pack this framed picture or that one, and which shoes I should wear on the plane.
Very mature, I know.
After two months, I had fallen in love with the city and people of Cape Town, South Africa, and in the height of the honeymoon stage, decided to extend my study permit for another two years. Soon after, I found myself in the beginning of a serious relationship with a (South African) man who would later become my husband.
That’s when reality hit.
Join me over at Velvet Ashes for the rest of this story?
