Goodbye,

This post comes from a very confused place. My mind and heart seem to be pulling in opposite directions, at different times. 

From the perspective of my mind...

My time here has been well spent. I came to Bolivia to achieve what? I came here to spend time with my sister and to scope out Bolivia as a potential landing spot. In my opinion, we gathered all the information we needed in the first two weeks. Though, I guess, we can justify staying longer for visiting purposes. Has Tarija changed that much, since my last visit, that I had to come again? Hmm...interesting. Visiting where my sister lives has been a intriguing adventure, I must admit. Being able to go to the wine country was quite a sight, plus the meat I ate, sent positive vibes through the body. The lookout we decided to go to was very dangerous...it took our breath away. I could not help throwing some comedic relief in there, I think of everything ;)  

Now, the time has come, for us to leave this place. We have so much waiting for me when I get home. I have a loving family, an amazerful dog (named Lord Archer), and a life that's waiting to be kicked into gear. What’s the hesitation? Why is there a cloud over going home? It just doesn't add up. Is there something else I'm not understanding...

...from the perspective of my heart...

Has the time to leave come already, what about all the things we didn't get to do and all the people we never met? My time spent in Sucre, was absolutely amazing. I was able to experience so many things. Sadly, we had too leave this Bolivian paradise, after just two weeks. I was quite heavy during the flight to Tarija. I wasn't sure what to expect from this city, is it the same as when I came in 2016? Or,has it changed? The first few days, I was weighed way down, but as the days began to go on, I became acclimated to the "adventure". I began to reach happiness. The views in the valley made me rejoice, and the lookouts deprived me of oxygen. Not too mention, the time spent making memories with my family members.

As I stated earlier, the time has come for me to leave Bolivia. It feels as though I'm being pulled in both directions, half of me longs to be with my family at home, while the other part longs for my sister to join me. I thought that my love for home would out weigh my love for here and the things present, but I was wrong. I see why everyone calls me treacherous.

From the perspective of me...

You heard from the parts that make me, but now that you have the colors I'll be using, prepare for the full picture. 

Coming here, I had a mindset, that since me coming to Bolivia temporary, it would be easy for me to leave. Preconceived notions are never a good thing-they tend to be wrong...a lot- As stated throughout, my love for Sucre is huge, so I knew that I would feel some sort of pain leaving. That said, I did not think the same would be true of Tarija. But I was mistaken, you see, I thought the joy made from meeting new people and experiences, was going to be the highlight. Granted, those things are really great and the things you write home about and tell at parties to present yourself as this cool, well-rounded person, but in reality those aren't the things that matter most. The things that matter most are the memories that you make with your family, memories that will last forever. I'm talking about things you remember that involve family members. No! I am talking about the memories, that when you look back, you remember exactly how felt in the moment, the joy that over took you. These things last a lifetime, nobody can take these things away from you. 

Why is it emotional for me to leave Bolivia? One reason. I am leaving my best friend. My sister, is probably the best sister there is, prove otherwise...I dare you. My grandpa has a saying that I live by to a certain extent, "Friends? No. I have acquaintances.". What he means is that, he does not let anyone get too close, because you never know peoples true intentions. I have walked through life with this thinking in mind, because there is much truth in these words. So for me to call you my friend and truly mean it, you must be very important to me and my life. With that in mind, you can imagine how much value I put in to the term best friend. It's not something I use loosely or plan on giving out again. After all, if you're the best, nothing compares. These words aren't put here for to say "awww" or "how sweet", they are put here because I want you to know how hard leaving was. 

Though leaving was hard, I knew that she was doing the right thing and that she has Jehovah's blessing. Another thing that made leaving much easier was knowing that she has living in Sucre in her future. Knowing she will live in a place that we both loved so much, eases the pain. Modern technology is a massive help as well, knowing communication will be so simple, is invaluable. Now, I look forward to the month of November, the month she returns...

Goodbye Bolivia and Gia (that rhymed)

Regards, 

Nikos Garloff