ONE Week

in ONE week, i'll leave the bay area and the next stage of my life will begin at the maxwell school of syracuse university.

i spent my day with my family, just as we normally do. tishzly would call it a "family fun day"--she coined the phrase as ONE when we'd all be able to hang out together, being stupid and having a great time. we went to the a's game--the giants lost, sadly--played scrabble, watched the family guy and the west wing. i'll truly miss my family, and it's starting to set in.

while i have ONE week left, i'm scrambling to hang out with as many people as i can before i leave. i've been contacting friends that i haven't seen in a while: old high school classmates, friends from santa cruz... i do this in an honest attempt to spend a moment with them--not necessarily before i leave--but rather so that we can just catch up and hopefully know where we left off for the next time we meet again. sadly, some friends aren't able to make time or seem unwilling to spend time. i guess that's just how life works sometimes.

yesterday, i spent an evening with my ex, trisha. while it was interesting, good memories were had as i serenaded her on the piano like i used to back in the day. the evening was one that i hope we can relive later on in life. as we went our separate ways 2 years ago, it's nice that she and i can still say hello to each other even though we sometimes don't get along.

as this ONE week passes, i'll be even more reflective. my cousins tell me that it's only ONE year and that i'll love it. i'm sure they're right. time will fly, and i'll--hopefully--be back home in what will seem like a few minutes. yet, i worry that, just as i mentioned in pinball game, this will be the beginning of an intense ride that will take me places to which i never dreamed of going.

half of me wants to play the full game, getting thrown around the world, touching people in so many ways through my work. yet, half of me wants to stay with my family and friends... i know that i must move on, however. life will get boring if you sit still. many people say that change is always good.

i imagine that i'll gain so much from this next year, but i fear that i'll also lose the people that mean the most to me--for a few of you, i worry that this has already happened.

still... time will pass, and i'll move on. i just need to find some good tour guides along the way that will help me on my journey. the one best piece of advice i've received so far: "if you sell out, make sure you sell out big." let's pray that it doesn't get to that point.

ONE week.