I’m not going to lie, I shed a couple tears
tonight because I’m missing one of my closest friends from down under. That’s
what I’ve been up to lately – saying so many goodbyes to Jordan Pearce. The
last few weeks have been all about spending as much time with this girl as
possible before sending her back home to North Carolina. Seriously, for the
past three weekends, I’ve left my house on Friday nights, bag packed, so I
could spend every waking (and non-waking) second with her – there were beach
days in Surfer’s Paradise, endless “going away parties,” and so many lazy days
at our friend Nate’s house, playing some cards, drinking some beers, and
listening to Nate play “Pumped Up Kicks” over and over on his guitar.
For those of you who don’t know Jordan,
she’s awesome. She was one of the first au pairs I met here in Brisbane, and
while we only got especially close in the last few months, she has been such a
huge part of my Australian experience. From big trips like Cairns and
Melbourne, to fun and lazy weekends in Brisbane, Jordan’s been there for all of
my favorite memories – and even for some of my not-so-favorite’s, she was right
next to me through it all. I can’t imagine Australia without her. I’m going to
miss having that person who never fails to fill a room with roaring laughter,
who I can spill my guts to about anything, and who will FaceTime me for hours
even from just right across town.
After spending the whole weekend together,
Kelsey, Nate and I drove Jordan to the airport on Sunday morning. It didn’t
feel real saying goodbye, sending her back home to the other side of the world.
I keep wanting to call her up to meet me in the city for burritos and cheap
movie Tuesdays, and then I realize it would take her a couple days and a couple
thousand dollars to do that, and it makes me so sad. We chatted the other night
after she got home, and she told me how strange it was to be back – like home
had been on pause, and now that she’s back and the play button’s been hit, it’s
hard to believe her year in Australia was real. “I’ve talked to you and Nate,
but part of me feels like you’re both just characters I made up in my head,”
she told me. Jordan, you are not a crazy person…I’m pretty sure I’m real! I
miss ya and love ya so much, and I have no doubt that the second I get back to
the States, I will be on my way to see you (this is definitely not "goodbye forever"). Until we meet again, my friend
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| "You're the strangest person I ever met, she said & I said you too & we decided we'd know each other a long time." |
