Sun, Stand Still

Today is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, marking the end of one season and the start of another. Today is also the last exam of my foreseeable future. If that weren't enough, today is a exactly a month until I leave London. The collision of these events couldn't be more apropos. Please forgive me for being a little sentimental. 

The sun rose at 4:43 and will set at 21:21. After taking my exam from 10 - 1, there are still hours of sunlight to enjoy. The extensive sunlight as the days have lengthened has been a real wonder to me since we don't experience such extremes in Florida. Waking up early many mornings - panicked I'd missed my class based on the position of the sun - was a small, slightly hilarious price to pay. After today, the days start to shorten again and I'll have returned to the U.S. before the dark days of winter return. 

I am trying not to be dramatic but it feels like the sun is literally setting on my time in London. The seasons are literally changing as I prepare to enter a new season of life as a young professional and leave that of being a student.

Moving to London was hard hard hard. Now it is hard to put words to paper that appropriately express how much I have enjoyed life in the last few months. We can joke that I'm weather motivated, but it is the strength of my relationships and recent experiences that really drives my happiness. Even though I know it is time, it is mildly frustrating to be moving again just as I feel settled in. Mom has always said I don't handle it well when things end. 

The word solstice comes from the Latin solstitium for "sun stands still". Today I would implore the sun to stand still for just a little longer, before the changes of the next few months come flooding in. Though he may not listen, I'll savor this gift of an extra long day. 

Ps. It's also Father's Day. Hi dad! I love you! Xxoo