If someone asked me to tell him about my time in Ireland, I would not know where to start. I mean I have lived here for nine months, where would I start? Which stories would I tell?
I could tell you how crazy it seem looking back that I just got on a plane and flew to a different country to live there without knowing anyone.
But I could also tell you how, even though I was afraid, I still did it and how incredibly proud I am now.
I could tell you about this one day when I laughed at my friend for getting sunburnt in Ireland and then got a sunburn myself.
Or I could tell you a long story about how I got to go to Brussels for free just because I said my opinion.
What if I told you that I caught myself becoming Irish, for example when I started wearing tracksuit just because everybody else does so, how I just adore potatoes or how many litres of tea I drank and mountains of biscuits I ate.
I could also tell you about the time I tried out Camogie and how the Kilkenny hurler could not stop laughing at me because I was just unable to hit a single sliotar.
Or about when I got to play for two minutes at a Gaelic football match because we were not able to win anymore anyway and how that absolutely did not matter for me because I even touched the ball.
I could tell you so many things that are typically Irish like the obsession with fake tan, wearing a school uniform that will feel totally normal one day or the meaning of shifting at a ball.
Not to forget the hours you will spend waiting for a bus to come and the fact that cows and sheep will probably be one of your favourite animals by the time you go home.
Here is another thing I could tell you: You will find a second home so you will never be fully at home. That’s the price you have to pay to have an amazing time.
I could tell you about how much you will learn, especially about yourself.
I could list a whole lot of moments when I felt like I was exactly where I should be.
And I could also tell you how I am sad, happy, glad and incredibly thankful for everything and that it is a mess but I am not too worried because I know that everything will be grand in the end.
I could tell you about how I will bring a suitcase back filled with memories and experiences that nobody will ever be able to take away from me.
I could tell you all those stories but it might be best if you just go and experience everything yourself so that you will be able to tell your own stories.