Tearin' Up My Heart

So, it is my very last night in America. The last three weeks in America have been some of the funniest times I've had so far and I have certainly squeezed a lot of sightseeing into them. I have been filling my time with all night monopoly games, tanning (and burning!) on the beautiful North Carolina beaches, seeing my amazing friends and many, many episodes of the American series of "The Office".

In a lot of ways a part of me feels very ready to leave. I miss my family and friends at home and in a way this last three weeks in the US has felt somewhat like living in limbo as I've been counting down to the day when I will have to say my final goodbyes and then return to what feels like "real life" in the UK.

However, in many other ways this three weeks has cemented the feeling that North Carolina has become a home to me too, and therein lies the confusion about leaving. During a visit to Boone this weekend I was able to complete the impossible and be in two places at once. During my first meal of North Carolina Barbecue (a dish I have been told I MUST eat on numerous occasions this year!!) it was brought to my friends attention that I had never been to Tennessee. With the border only twenty minutes away we jumped in the car and decided to pay an impromptu visit. As I stood straddling the state line, making me technically in both North Carolina and Tennessee at once, I realised how perfect it would be if I truly could be in two places at once. However, as with many things, it is just not that simple.

Although I feel a lot of sadness at leaving America and this amazing year behind I do find comfort in the thought that if home is where the heart is I can count myself lucky to have homes all over the world with the people I care the most about.