It's hard to say goodbye (Appreciation & Farewell notes)

As most of you know, I have graduated from my undergraduate study!

I am leaving Bloomington in a week to go back to Malaysia. I am looking forward to new adventures ahead, but I hate to say goodbye to all my friends here.

I don't know when we will meet again, so I want to make sure I take this opportunity to thank some of you, who have played a big part in making my life here in US a better one.

1. Wan Ning

We will be traveling back together so technically, you will be the last person I say goodbye to, but you are also the first person I want to say thanks to.

Throughout these 3 years as housemates, we have learned so much from each other, and we have witnessed each other's successes and failures. There were times I was frustrated because of you; however, there were even more times I was comforted by you, either by your presence, your words of encouragement, or your acts.

I remember you waited for me until late night to get home after school so that we could have reunion dinner together at CNY eve, you welcomed me home from vacation with your home made cake, and you accompanied me to our first ever musical in US.

Thank you for tolerating me, and always being there supporting me. I could not ask for a better housemate.

2. (in alphabetical order) Alex, Alka, Allan, Ashish, David, Ed, Ely, Grace, Jason, Jing, Lauren, Maple, Mercury, Rebecca, Stephy, Temi

Oh my crazy yet loving bunch of brothers and sisters in Christ, you guys are the biggest reason why it's hard for me to say goodbye. From bible study to coffee hour/BISM events, to barn dancing, late nights at IMU, and countless movie/ice cream hangouts, you guys have proven to me that God-loving people are also fun-loving people!

Don't get me wrong, the valuable part of our relationships is not just the fun, but the honesty, the vulnerability, and the acceptance. I feel safe whenever I am around all of you; I know that if I have a problem and I need advice or help, you guys will be there to listen, and to offer help.

Ed, you are the perfect leader for our troop of monkeys group of young adults. You always take care of us like a caring big brother, a loving father. Even though I scored the lowest on physical touch as my love language, I do enjoy getting bear hugs from you. :)

But then, of course, sometimes I do feel embarrassed being with you guys too. You know what I am talking about.

3. (in alphabetical order) the Huffs, the Hustons, the Iruojes, Paul, the Pontiuses, the Rajamanis, the Raads, SJ, and the Sherwoods

 

It is my privilege to be able to work with all of you, and more importantly, to get to know you more as friends and mentors.

Thank you for giving me many opportunities to learn to serve the Lord, in a nurturing and encouraging environment. Thank you for having the servant's heart, to provide all the rides and all the delicious meals to the international students.

For the families with young kids, thank you for giving me a chance to be a witness to the growth of your children. Though I am definitely not a fan of babies and drooling kiddos, I do enjoy watching and listening to your children sharing their stories with me, with their eyes sparkling in excitement and curiosity.

4. Priscilla

I remember the day where you randomly walked up to me and Syaza, and asked whether we understood the Spectrochemistry lecture. I didn't, and I still don't understand a thing from that class.

You are one of the most hardworking people I have met, and I admire your determination to seek understanding and truth. Thank you for being there with me, either through those tough exam times or those sleepy lecture times. Thank you for always sharing your gums/chocolate/snacks with me.

Your presence makes the gloomy Chemistry building a welcoming place for me. Sincerely, I think I wouldn't have enjoyed the course work as much if I didn't meet you.

I am so glad for you that you made it into your target graduate school and may God continue to bless you abundantly!

5. My Union Street Market colleagues

USM is my constant source of frustration, but it is also my constant source of entertainment.

I love all the chats I had in kitchen with you guys, all the rush hours where we worked together diligently, and above all, I love the diversity among us, either in our majors, our nationalities, or our ways of working.

Thank you for all the support (and gossip), either in person or through the group chat. I have learned a lot about leadership and management from you guys (seriously, no shade). I know I didn't hang out much with you guys, but I did enjoy every house parties or hangout sessions I have been to.

6. All my course mates and Malaysian friends

Lastly, I would like to thank all of you who have crossed path with me, either because we were in the same class(es) or in the same association.

Your presence have surely made my life more interesting, and I shall not forget all the fun and special moments we had together, especially all the cooking sessions I had with most of you here in the pictures.

Dear friends, if I don't get to see you in person before I go back to Malaysia, please know that I love you, I cherish all the time we spent together, and I will miss you dearly.

Flight Delay: A blessing in disguise

Over the past two summer vacations, I have experienced major delay issues when I was commuting between cities. I have talked about those two experiences before, and you can read them in details here.

This summer, I traveled with my parents so when I was planning the trip, I avoided odd timing commutation and of course, poor bus service (you know which company I am talking about). By the grace of God, the whole trip was a great success with only minor delays (delays less than 2 hours). Since our schedule was pretty laid back and flexible, those delays didn't affect us at all.

Yesterday, I sent off my parents at 10 am and my flight back to Indy (JFK-RDU-IND) was scheduled to be at 5 pm. I was supposed to reach RDU (in North Carolina) by 6:50 pm for a short layover, and reach Indy before 10 so that I could catch the last shuttle home at 10:20 pm. After spending more than 6 hours waiting at JFK airport, I was tired and all ready to head home.

I boarded the flight at 4:30 pm and fell asleep right away. I woke up at half an hour later, only to realize the flight has not moved at all and all the passengers were asked to de-board the flight because the flight door couldn't close. The person sat beside me jokingly asked the flight crew whether they have tried to use duck tape to secure the door. Ha!

The flight was rescheduled to fly at 7 pm (with another aircraft). During our wait, we were given airplane snacks and drinks to munch on. I knew for sure I was going to miss my connecting flight, so I went to ask for a flight change. The attendant told me to board the flight to RDU anyway, and they will reschedule my flight and compensate me at RDU. 

I was fine with the arrangement because at that point, I just want to get out of JFK. I was sick of NYC never-ending crowd.

I got to witness a breathtaking sunset with Manhattan skyline at the horizon during the takeoff from JFK. The bird-eye view of North Carolina was mesmerizing too. The meandering rivers, the nicely structured neighborhoods surrounded by large patches of green bushes, and the sight of city buildings at far. The sky was stained with vivid hues of orange, pink, and indigo.

Upon arrival, I was greeted by the Delta staff and I was quickly rescheduled to stay overnight at a nearby hotel to catch a flight this morning. I was taken to the hotel by a shuttle, and was given cookie and water as supper before I was sent off to my room.

The delay was surely tiring and unsettling. But hey, I got a free night stay in North Carolina! A state that I have yet to explore and a rather pricey hotel that I will not have stayed if I have to pay.

I took a nice hot shower, did some photo editing, and dozed off to sleep right away. This morning I was once again taken to the RDU airport by shuttle, and both the hotel and Delta provided me snacks and drinks, so I didn't have to spend on food.

During my three years stay in USA, I have had a fair share of flight/bus/train delay experiences. Thankfully all of those delays happened when I was on vacation so I was not in rush to do something important.

Besides that, I am very thankful that the delay this time happened after my trip with my parents has ended because I don't want my parents to go through all the waiting and frustration. I was praying hard that all the hotel/hostel would be decent and all the commutation would be smooth; God has lovingly answered all my prayers and gave us more than what we asked. I will talk more about my hotel/hosteling experience in coming posts. So stay tuned!

Overall, I consider the flight delay this time a present from God, rewarding me for my hard work planning this family graduation trip, with a free night stay at a comfortable hotel.

And now, for one last time, I am Bloomington-bound.