Hannah Coombs: January 2017

Well, it's been exactly one year since I finished my year and a half mission in Chile and returned home to the US. I've actually been super bad about keeping a journal this past year, so this is just kind of to recap all the great things that have happened to me since I've been back. I find that people sometimes like to reflect on their mission as the best time of their life, and I definitely won't deny that it is a time I will always treasure and love, but I also want to show that life keeps moving, and that lots of really great things can continue to happen.

So I'm not really sure how I want to organize this. If it comes out all mumbo jumbo and jumbled, just cut me some slack. I guess to take it way back, coming home was such an interesting feeling. Haha as soon as I saw my family, it was almost as if it had been a week since we'd seen each other, and that the mission was a dream. Talk about a surreal feeling. It was awesome to see everyone again, but it was also super weird coming to terms that they had all also been living lives the whole year and a half I was gone. My youngest sister Stephanie looked super weird because she'd grown a whole bunch. It was so bad that I almost couldn't look at her the whole day because it freaked me out. Sorry Steph, Haha, I also just remember walking around the house and thinking, "Wow, this is sooooo big, and we have soooo much stuff." I definitely went through some culture shock, to say the least. Adjusting to normal life again was also harder than I expected it would be, I had adjusted to the mission and Chilean culture without too many problems, so I thought it would be a piece of cake readjusting to American life and culture, but boy-oh-boy, it was actually super hard for me. Hahaha if you ask my family they'll say that I had a super Chilean accent when I got home, and that I would randomly start speaking in Spanish without knowing it. Don't get me wrong, as much as I missed all the people I had met and comed to love in Chile, I also loved being able to spend time with my family. I don't want this year long recap to read, so I'll have to be a little less detailed with some things. I got a job to keep me busy, and that was pretty cool. As a family we went skiing for a week at Grand Targhee. We had an International Night activity with our ward, and the Chile station was obviously the best haha. I even danced that cueca (Chilean national baile). Katherine graduated high school, and eventually it was time for me to go out to BYU to start classes again in June. We got to spend an awesome week in Driggs first, hiking, and hanging out, and relaxing, but then it was back to the grind of classes and work and al that jazz.

I also managed to have lots of super fun adventures. For example:
- I took a scuba diving class
- Went to Nitro Circus
- Camped in Moab
- Went to Arches National Park
- Repelled off an arch and hung upside down
- Paddle boarded down the Colorado River
- Work a custodial job
- Visited Connor up in Logan and hiked the wind caves. We also ate the best Mexican food
- Paddle boarded down the Provo River and almost died. Haha not really but I still have a scar on my leg. The people forgot to give us paddles, so it was hard to steer.
- Went Skydiving.... TWICE. IT WAS SERIOUSLY THE COOLEST THING EVER! I wish I could do it everyday, Wow. It was great haha
- Played intramural softball
- Went wake-boarding and wake-surfing in Bear Lake
- I visited my roommate Emily in California, and now I know why everyone talks about California. She lives about 5 min from the beach and it is an absolutely beautiful place. We went to the Channel Islands (the least visited national park), where we hiked to the top of the island, and then we went snorkeling.
- Tried surfing
- Learned to dirt bike
- Brady Simon got married, so the whole Schaumburg gang got back together for the day
- Went to general conference
- Danced at a Latin dancing club, and I actually wasn't as bad as you might think
- Learned to lead climb
- Saw One Republic in concert
- Went to a Grouplove concert with Katherine and we were practically on the first row. BEST CONCERT EVER
- Played intramural frisbee with the coolest people and almost won the championship
- Played intramural flag football, hahaha that was super fun
- Visited Yellowstone National Park
- Hiked East Rim to Observation Point in Zion National Park. I would highly recommend that hike, It was SO cool and so different from any hike I'd ever done in Zions
- Went to a German festival
- Grandpa Rex said that the Bachata wasn't real dancing, so he taught me how to waltz haha
- Spent Christmas in Chicago where we went to the Christkindle Market, went to the Museum of Science and Industry, walked ALL over Chicago and it was great :) it was way fun to spend time with family
- Decided to double major in Spanish
- Started Winter semester at BYU
- got accepted to the Spain study abroad
- Went skiing
- Went sledding and got wrecked. Three weeks later and my elbow is still super bruised
- Joined intramural inner tube water polo. It's probably the funniest thing ever
- Made tons of really cool friends throughout the year, and stayed in contact with lots of my friends in Chile.

So all in all it's been a pretty eventful year, and I'm pretty sure I haven't included the half of it. It's definitely had its ups and downs, but overall I'd say that this has been a good year of progress, learning, and adventuring. It's been super fun having Connor and Katherine close by so we can hangout, and technology is the bee's knees because then I can call Margo, Corbin, and Stephanie whenever I feel like it. haha, I have the best family :) Not to be rude to any of you, but this blog is mostly for me to keep track of what's going on in my life, so hopefully I'll be updating it once a week or so. But yeah, one-year-anniversary wooo.

Stay sweet,
Hannah Coombs

Ps. Sorry these pictures are in no particular order, and that there are so many... a lot happens in a year