Hey ya'll!! Sorry it's been so long! Finals and AP exams are coming up soon.... ahhhhhhhhh! And it's been absolutely crazy. But after school is over everything will be devoted to Turkey. Weirdly enough, I'm not anxious to leave. Of course I am excited, but I am really appreciating being here with my friends and family, because it is flying by! I found out when my AFS orientation is :D June 1st, and  afterwards there is a pool party (whooooo!!!!) with the AFS students being hosted here this year, who I already know because of my sister (YES student we are hosting from Jordan). There is a girl in my area who is going to China with NSLI-Y. I'm so excited to meet her and all the other outgoing students and hear their stories about why they are doing what they are doing! And of course, I CAN'T WAIT to see all the YESers again in D.C. in June. Ohmygosh!
     I read a girl's blog a few weeks ago who came home early from Turkey with the YES program due to problems with homesickness and depression. I'm not gonna lie, I got pretty freaked out. My certainty that this year was going to be amazing slipped, and was replaced by the fear and realization that it might be awful. That I could miss my very close knit family so much that I don't appreciate the beautiful country around me. That I could be so lonely and lost in this new country and language that this amazing opportunity is completely lost on me. Any possible combination of awful things came into my mind those few days. I turned to the people who I knew would immediately understand; the people I met in D.C. at the IPSE. After talking to them and thinking it over for a few days, I had come to the full realization that no one has the same experience, and though it will be hard (extremely hard), if I go with an open heart and mind, with no expectations, I should be able to deal with those hardships. I reminded myself why I have wanted this year so much for so long, and why I changed my choice from France to YES Abroad; because I wanted a year that was completely and utterly different from the U.S. My number one love in this world is traveling, and when things get hard or my nerves kick in I just have to remember to not look at the pros of being THERE, but look at the pros of being wherever I am. Whether that is at home or wherever else the world takes me.
     I have to finish my English final project now, but I leave ya'll with two things. One is a daily Turkish lesson! The letter C is pronounced like J, as in Jim. Weird huh?! And the other are pictures from Prom last weekend. I went with my friends and my sister, and my date was a YES student from Saudi Arabia! It was amazing, and I am so grateful I got to share it with everyone before I leave. Talk to ya'll later! Maybe I'll be done with school then :D :D :D Hugs and kisses

Me and my sister getting ready for prom! We watched Sleepover. Definitely a classic movie of our generation! Love you sis <3

Me and Aziz, my date. I love the corsage he got me!

My friends and I in front of our old garage door!! :D