As we took off from Sydney in our Boeing 747, I looked back at Australia knowing that the year of traveling was over. It was really sad and a bit overwhelming thinking that when I touched back down in Fort Walton in those coming several hours that my life's dream would already be accomplished. There are many other places in the world to see and exciting challenges to overcome, but this past year has been one of the best years of my life and taught me a lot about myself, gave me a new confidence in dealing with nearly any situation, and showed me a world that I would never find through books, movies, and especially the news.

It was also sitting there watching Australia fade away that I really felt like I was ready and at the starting point or launch point for my life. I know that in twenty years I will think back to that little cramped airplane seat and answer the questions that I have now "What will I do? And Who will I become?" I hope that it will be something good, but coming home and adjusting to life back with the family and not moving every few days or waking up and wandering out into a completely new and unfamiliar world everyday has been extremely hard. I find myself sitting quiet with thoughts of the trip and people from the trip constantly racing through my head and in doing so I zone out everyone around me. It is also very hard to re-adjust to living on or with somebody else's schedule, and I am having to constantly tell myself to be patient with people because while I have changed quite dramatically over the course of the trip, my friends and family at home have not changed much at all. Sometimes I even become quietly frustrated to the point where I want to walk out the door, set off to the "third world," and work and travel for the rest of my life. I actually believe that the only thing that keeps me from doing so is that I have an urgent desire to accomplish something great and positive with my life that could help all the people that I have met in these poor countries.

Now, as I slowly make my transition back to "normal" life in the States, I feel myself shying away from many people until I feel more comfortable and content with being back and am trying to catch up on our world by sifting through The Rolling Stone, The Economist, ESPN, People, and all the others so that I can re-connect my common bonds with the people here since my existence over the past year has been purely the sights, the people, and the experiences of the world without hardly any contact with the world we live in and this makes it hard for even my closest friends to relate to me and me to them. It is sure to be a rocky next few weeks, but I believe that while I will eventually transition back into the lifestyle of the States, I will also always have the experiences and world view like no other, which will give me a great advantage in dealing with people and deciphering the world around me. It has been a fantastic year, and I greatly appreciate the emails, comments, and messages. I wish you all a Happy Holiday, and encourage you to venture out to the unknown. Cheers!