Sunday July 19

This morning we said goodbye to Ron and Kathleen. Then, we said goodbye to Heather right before they took me to the airport. It was hard to say goodbye, but I knew it was coming. I tried to hold back the tears as much as I could, but it didn't work. When they left, I went to check in.

First, I went inside and stood in line, but soon realized that the line was for people who checked in online. So I went to the curbside check-in are outside. When it was time for me to pay, they asked for a credit card. I gave them the card, but it didn't work, so I would have to go inside to use cash. The line was extremely long, and I only had 20 minutes left to check in. I asked a guy ahead in the line if I could cut in front of him because I was running late. Thankfully, he let me. Time was really running short, so I asked an employee if I could go ahead. She let me come out of line and check in. I made it to my gate and went to board the plane. The ticket I had didn't have a seat number, so I had to wait. I didn't think that I was going to have a seat on the plane, but I got my boarding pass last minute. I made it on the plane, but it was a really close call.

After a few minutes of flying, I decided to read my encouragement letters. They, of course, made me cry. All of them were great and made me even more thankful for such a great team. The rest of the flight, I listened to music and slept a little. When I got to the Denver airport, I got some dinner, then went to my gate to journal and read. We left Denver about 30 minutes late because both runways were pretty busy and there was a storm outside. The flight was pretty short. My family and a few of my friends were waiting for me when I arrived. It was really good to see them.

Coming home was one of the hardest things I have done, but I knew that I had to do it. Re-adjusting will take a while after spend a month with 27 amazing men and women. Seattle Summer Project was an experience like nothing else, and I'm so glad that I could be a part of it. I have learned so much in the past four weeks, and I can't wait to share it with everyone else.