Nostalgia

York seems to have anticipated my departure, and its way of coping is throwing a weather-tantrum. Every day has consisted of overcast, sunshine, rain, a little hail, and LOTS of wind. This counterproductive maneuver has resulted in our relative inability to enjoy the outdoors. Not that we haven't tried. Over the past two weeks, Mike and I have explored the various strolling options that York has to offer. Currently, my favorite stroll is along the banks of the Foss, a path that ultimately leads to a little gem of a park. This walk is not without its downsides. Each time we step onto the path, a horde of ducks and geese assume we are coming for the sole purpose of feeding them. These birds have no boundaries. The last time we went there, I had to run away from a goose that nearly walked into my crotch and seemed to have no intention of backing down. When we finally give up and walk away, each time we turn around, the group of birds follows us, getting closer and closer with every attempt at escaping them (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzzjgBAaWZw). We solve this problem by spreading our arms out really wide, charging at the group, and hissing and honking loudly.
This is a really roundabout way of saying that I am in the process of being very nostalgic. At this moment, I am feeling a little stretched. I have not yet come to terms that I will not be coming back to York (except for a ten-minute change at the rail station when I go to Manchester to fly home). My refusal to start thinking about leaving ("We still have time!") will, I know, come back to bite me, but I can't help it. At the same time, I am looking forward to going to Edinburgh again (my home away from home away from home) and seeing Julia and Alex. This prospect warms the cockles of my heart, but at the same time, I am ultimately looking forward to finally going home to Grand Rapids, a place that is familiar and comforting. I Skyped my family when they were at my cousin's wedding, and I have to admit that I am really homesick right now. I miss my front yard and my neighbors and my bed and my dog and my family and my kitchen and downtown GR and the Lake and my car and being able to bake cookies whenever I feel like it.
That's the issue. I'm feeling really homesick for Grand Rapids, but I'm also feeling really homesick for Future Sarah, who will be feeling homesick for York. Does that make any sense? I know how these things go, and I know that I will long to be back in York. And I also know that I will probably never come back here again.
Ugh.
So here we go: instead of writing ten more blogs on leaving York, I'm going to be really nostalgic and list some of the top things that I will miss about York:
• The history: I know, I say it over and over, but there is really nothing like this in the U.S.
• The silly street names: Grape Street, Elbow Lane, Whip-ma-whop-ma Gate. Need I say more?
• The Grange Kitty: Have I not told you guys about her? She is a resident of the Grange, and she loves me (and Mike, apparently). She comes right up to us and nuzzles our legs. I LOVE ANIMALS!
• The ability to get a filling lunch with less than two pounds (Thank you, Thomas the Baker, Cooplands, and the Cornish Pasty Bakery!)
• The silly British sayings ("Hiya!" "You alright?" "I'll be back at half seven.")
• The pub life. It was so nice to sit and chat and sip a beer in a five-hundred-year-old building.
• The ease of being a pedestrian
• Cream tea (See image above)
• Playing Frisbee in the Museum Gardens—one of Mike's and my favorite pastimes.
• Middletons: One more full-English breakfast on Tuesday, and then it's goodbye. They were my surrogate parents in York.
• The Minster: I've said enough on this topic

I could go on forever. The point is, I feel completely at ease here. I have adopted York—or has it adopted me? Either way, this is no longer a "new" city that I need to explore and understand. It has morphed into my York. I am a heaping pile of confusion right now, so I don't quite know what else to say except that this has been one of the most rewarding times of my life. And I'm afraid I'll come home and feel like none of it even happened. Well, at least I have this blog to prove it.