This is it.

One year has flown by way to quickly. This exact time last year, I had finally just landed in Australia and had a chance to let it sink in that yes, I HAD made the move and there was no going back now. Reflecting back, there are so many things that have happened over this last year that I never in my life expected to happen. I mean, just take a reminding look at my blog's profile 'About Me':

As I left the Glory days of the University of Georgia, I embarked on an adventure that I soon began to refer to as "Stumbling Through My 20's." It seemed only appropriate to document these graceful moments of highs and lows in a sequence of chapters appropriately titled by the major surrounding events. I begin this documentation with Chapter 6: Stumbling Down Under. Although I will go back to write Chapters 1-5, I begin the tale here, with the greatest, most looked forward to, yet most terrifying event of my life: Moving to Melbourne, Australia for One Year. Over this next year, I am hopeful and anxious to meet many new people, work on a vineyard, travel, and most importantly, gather as many life lessons from these future memories as possible, to return to the U.S. in one year as a new and improved version of myself. Let the journey begin...


I know I've talked about this before, and I think this time, I can actually revise the facts in my 'About Me' to be more accurate, because obviously by the looks of it, I will be in Australia for much longer than originally planned. I haven't worked on a vineyard, but I have travelled, (I've unexpectedly met a boy!) and I have achieved the most important part - I have started to and will continue to gain as many life lessons as possible to take with me for the rest of my life. I have become a new and improved version of myself, but I am still continuing to grow, and I can't wait to see where I am at in yet another year.

Just to reminisce, here are 5 of some of the most important lessons I've learned:

1. Don't jump off balconies and miss the bean bag.
2. Patience. Doors that need to be opened will open in time. Fret and worry won't make it open any faster.
3. How to drive on the left hand side of the road (which in turns equates to escalators and the 'correct' flow of traffic on sidewalks as well).
4. IT language. Before starting at Accenture, I was lucky to be able to keep my laptop intact when it decided to freeze or shut all my programs down unexpectedly. I can now happily say that I am learning some valuable terminology and useful facts (including Excel shortcuts!) to help me in the workplace. (Don't you dare ask me to fix your laptop though. That's what Geek Squad is for).
5. Who my real friends are. (That may sound harsh, but moving to the complete other side of the world separates you from a place where you can have acquaintances who are there when you have no other plans. If you want to stay in touch with someone, you put in the effort to.)

I don't know where my life is headed, and I don't want to. I am so happy where I am at right now - not only from where I was just 1 year ago, but how my life is shaping to carry me on to the next adventure, the next journey. So as I said in my 'About Me,' ..."Let the Journey Begin..." , I now say, "Let the Journey Continue."