Last day. Wow. How time really flies that fast when you're having fun. I remember how anxious I am at first. I'm not really a role model to begin with. I most certainly can't behave appropriately at certain times and even more follow tradition that I'm not used to. But people here have been very understanding. They have guided as in every step of our way. They respected our differences and our boundaries. They didn't force to impose who we should be but instead they let us be who we already are. It was somehow a rollercoaster ride for me. I often found myself in doubt and always believed that I'm a constant disappointment, but students in Al-Amjad let me feel otherwise. They made us feel appreciated and important. This is the self-validation that I needed. Imagine if I didn't take that leap of faith in risking what I can lose in trying to be here, I wouldn't have all these amazing experiences that I can treasure for the rest of my life. Both UMSU and Al-Amjad made us feel that we already are a part of their family; that we shouldn't hesitate to go back there, for we have built a part in their home. I definitely didn't felt home sick for the whole month because the people felt like home. They didn't make us feel any different. And today, UMSU decided to throw us a little farewell party with a few of the administrators. They gave us a trophy as a sign of recognition. We also met Joko, an Indonesian SEA-teacher who was deployed in the Philippines. He's really funny and even though we only met for half of the day, we still felt immediately close to him. He has been so knowledgeable about Filipinos already that reminded me, oh yeah, we're coming home in a few hours. At the end of the party, we sang them three Filipino songs. I didn't even know if I still have dignity left after that. Nonetheless, it was nice to see these people for the last time.
After the farewell party, we went straight home to rest. Miss Yayuk invited us to meet her at Al-Nazwa cafe, our fave cafe, to treat us for some drinks and food. Such a waste, I'm still full. But as they say, there's no full tummy, if the food is free! After we eat, we went back home to rest for a while because we have one final meeting to go to.
Of course, it's none other than the Kucing Asma family a.k.a. Ping Pong Pang group! We agreed to meet them at an eatery they suggested. Since it's our last day to actually be with them. For the past few weeks, we witnessed how they are as friends; they treat each other as family. In the Philippines, it's near to impossible to have a large group of friends where all are real. I guess kucing asma really know how to value each and every member of their family that made them solid. And now, we're a part of that family, too. Is there any more gratifying feeling than that? So as I stayed there, I tried to communicate with more of them as much as I could. Later on, a group of girls came and gave me a gift - a white shoulder bag. They're also from Al-Amjad, and the kucing asma knew them, too. I didn't know what to say but "thank you". I didn't expect to receive any gift from anyone anymore. I talked to them for while and later on everybody stood up and are ready to leave. My students from Grade 7-6 learned that I was just nearby so they told me to wait for them so they could say goodbye. So I let Angel and Ally go home first; Triin stayed with me as I wait for my students. We took pictures while waiting and one-by-one, they go home through their Grab rides. After a while, they arrived; two of them. Keyla, cried so hard the moment she saw me. Oh no, please don't cry baby girl, I'm about to cry too. We took more photos; even though I looked haggard already, I don't care anymore. I just want to have something I could keep as a reminder that I knew them. As we say our farewells, I burst out my tears that I have been holding on for the last few days. This is really it, we're going back; without knowing if we could ever meet them again someday. That's the worst thing about it. It's like a one time trial of something so amazing, yet you can't have it again.
We booked our ride home, and when it arrived, two of the kucing asma talked to the driver in Bahasa. All I understood was "Filipina" and "bahasa inggris". Maybe he's telling the driver that we can only understand English - how thoughtful and caring. They said goodbye and that they love us; I can definitely hear the sincerity on their voice. The emotions I thought were already settled, immediately climbed back up and fueled my tears to fall down. Triin and I looked at each other, and knew that if one of us cries, the other cries. So we both turned our heads against the window and cried. We tried to hold back our tears but we failed, so we just talked about it and laughed while crying. It's funny how we cried the whole trip until we got home. Maybe the driver thinks we're some kind of freak.
Still, we have to go home, compose ourselves and finish packing. We have to be up by 6 AM. I feel sleepy because my eyes are tired from crying and I have no sleep. After we pack our things we slept for like, an hour, and head to our ride to the airport.