"Don't be sad that it is over, be glad that it happened."

It is quite surprising how fast the semester goes by... Upon looking back, I rarely posted about the incredible events and moments that I would have loved to document on my blog. These moments will always be with me in my heart, and I would have been more grateful to have shared those experiences to the greater community.

The final weeks of the program were bittersweet. There were joyful and relieved faces that finals were done, yet there were melancholy faces that the study abroad experience was coming to an end... At the Graduation Ceremony this past Friday, 130 young adult Japanese college students finished an intensive 10 month American Studies Program in Salem, Oregon at Willamette University. Majority of the students flew back to their hometowns in Japan Saturday morning. Their experiences in the States will always be a part of them whether they are conscious of it or not. Their time in another country, culture, language allows them to grow and stretch in ways they would never have been able to do if they did not take that step to journey outside their safety box. I appreciate the bravery, creativity, and spirit of these students...