It's over...

And I’m home. After a whole year in Japan, after learning the language and making friends I'll never forget, after getting my black belt in kendo and climbing Mt. Fuji, after everything I've done and seen, it's all over. I'm sitting in my living room typing an email, not worrying about my settings mysteriously turning over to Japanese while I'm not looking. I've got two weeks till I'm off to college, meanwhile I'll rest and swim and work down my little sister's list of things to do together before I go away again. My family all got taller, but otherwise everyone's the exact same as they where before. I was worried they'd all change too much during my stay abroad,but nobody really did.

Thanks to everyone who helped me have a really amazing year. At the request of my host families, I'll start a blog in Japanese about my experiences from here on out. If you're interested and you know Japanese, feel free to email me for the URL.