“But you haven’t even been gone long enough to feel homesick!”

But still I am… That doesn’t mean I am not settling in well or anything like that.  My job is great and my apartment is lovely and how cool is it that I finally get to live with my husband… Yet there is still this sense of sadness I can’t quite shake. It comes up when you least expect it, like when you are grading papers or right before you change into your pajamas or when you are with your friends and they say or do something to remind you of home.

My apartment in Huntington was disgusiting AF and on more than one occassion the police were lurking around trying to find drug dealers to arrest. But it’s not the apartment I miss. It’s seeing my friends that I have been friends with for years. Friends that I can really talk about anything with. Sure, I have friends here, but there’s always this element of fakeness and professionalism that I don’t have to maintain with my real friends. (Side note- I can be totally chill with Shiana and Sinette but they are in Qassim). I miss being able to get in my car and drive to see my mom and grandma any time I want. I miss my Friday routine that I have kept for the past like 4 years while I lived in USA. I even miss the stupid small things, like Chipolte buritto bowls and the fall scented wallfowers from Bath and Body Works. I miss being able to wear 7 layers at once and still not be too hot. I miss going to Starbucks and seeing 503 different people you know because you live in a small town and know everyone.

I know I will continue to make new friends here and I will continue to thrive and build both professional and casual relationships. I will get a ton of work experience at a great university. Best of all I will get a salary that I can actually live on. And while I am sure this homesicknesses will pass and I will go out and enjoy my life here, my heart will always be somewhere in the Appalachian mountains.