Mejores Amigos // Best Friends

Something amazing happened this weekend.  I said goodbye to one of my best friends on exchange. Now it's not what you are thinking, saying goodbye to to a friend hurts.  The fact of them leaving and not knowing when you will ever see them again in your life is painful and unsettling. When someone important leaves from your life you feel empty, like a piece of you is missing.  But the amazing part about saying goodbye this weekend was what I learned about the invaluable friendships that I have made on exchange.

This was the first goodbye I have made in Argentina, making it one of the hardest. Saying your first goodbye makes leaving feel real.  It made me realize how little time I have in this country and how strong the friendship was between him and I.  He was like a brother to me, and even though we had our differences (like all brothers) I loved having him as a big part of my exchange.  He was one of the first friends that I made after arriving to Argentina and everything we suffered through, we went through together.  We always supported and were there for each other.

This weekend was my last rotary conference.  All of the exchange students had to introduce themselves and say a few words about their exchange.  One by one, we introduced ourselves to the audience of 200 Rotarians and other exchange students.  It came to be my friends turn and he started out by saying that he had to say goodbye to his best friend on exchange today and how great friends we had become.  It brought tears to my eyes as we embraced each other and hugged on stage. The audience let out a collective "aww" and this gave them more of an understanding of how close we have gotten over this year.

Stories like this are why I chose to do exchange.  The friendships on exchange are incomparable to any other type of relationship.  You begin the journey scared, not being able to talk and vulnerable, like a newborn. Then slowly but surely, you begin to develop and grow as a person.  We not only spent 9 months together, we have grown together. I can say without a doubt that Wim and I will stay friends for the rest of my life and I will definitely be heading to Germany soon.  Thank you for everything you have done for me this year and thank you to all of the exchange students for making this year unforgettable.

Love you man.

Ben