K.F.A. Visits

Last weekend a very dear friend of mine traveled up the east coast to visit me. She trusted her life to a pilot who is paid less than 20,000 dollars a year to come see me. This was a pretty big deal! College life is hectic (and sometimes miserable), and I think we were both in need of a retreat. She left me feeling so full of life and motivated to be a better person. That is nothing new, even a quick phone call with her always refreshes me!

We squeezed a lot into four short days, here is the recap:

On Friday night after a five hour I-495 traffic jam we bonded with the mom and pops over some lemon butter salmon (my meat eating palate is returning, sigh) and poppy seed salad. Saturday, I woke her up early to take her to C.A.'s Glory Days Cross Country race, definitely the highlight of her trip! Then we ventured into Georgetown for the Taste of Georgetown, a quick tour of the campus, and some window shopping. We both fell in love with Georgetown! K.F.A. declared, "Georgetown has everything... shopping, eating, college, and the outdoors!" I would say she was right on. We also managed to squeeze in a quick tour of my hometown and some Big Bang Theory. As always, there was plenty of time for talking. Life has been so blah lately, but our conversations are so encouraging. K.F.A. is extremely honest with her emotions, something I really struggle with. I admire that in her!

Sunday K.F.A. caught some ZZZ's before I took her on a five hour walking tour of the District. The walking tour of D.C. can be a bit daunting, but she found joy in the beautiful weather (and the number of people out on a Sunday). I love your ability to find joy in the little things! She saw a lot of D.C. but also learned about the misery of parking... when there is so much going on (a Solar Decathlon, Gay Pride Rally, Kick For Kids Who Can't, and the last stop in the Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk). After some fillets we jammed on World Tour before hitting the sack. We had one last stop (two actually) Monday before K.F.A. hit the road: Great Falls for a mini hike and lunch at Panera (second only to Einstein Bros).

I am really really really unsure how I survive 27 months without you in Africa. I am going to miss you so much, heck I already do miss you! Your work ethic, your determination, your passion for change, your lack of understanding of close mindedness, the book recommendations, AND your story telling... definitely what I am going to miss most. In all of this I failed to mention her amazing ability to make a killer playlist. That will be hard to live without as well.

It is going to be hard to be out of the loop these next couple of crucial years. Good luck with Coast Rica or Medical School or a year off. Wherever you go I am behind you. I know you have thought it through... and throughly planned. I have faith in you and our friendship! Always remember, "Good things happen when you go for it." (Alan Webb)