Who decided to speed up the clock?

Seriously. It seems like just yesterday I was counting down the days, like 35 or something, until I could be home and not have to worry about anything, but now it's down to 7 days. One week from today, I will be finishing the last packing rituals and spending the last evening with my host family.
Today, I went to Chateau de Chenonceau, my favorite castle in all of France. It was decorated in the interior for Christmas, which made it all the more beautiful. We hopped on a train after school and visited the great site for about 3 hours then took a train back to Tours. I would say it was a marvelous experience... Most definitely.
This past week has been a little nostalgic, to say the least. I've been taking my camera with me to the Institute, just in case the opportunity presents itself to take photos. I have been taking some of the interior of the building, because it's not every day that one goes to school in an old royal residence.
I feel like there are a lot of disjointed thoughts in my head... So many things I want to say, but words aren't coming. Being in France has been a little bit of a fight for me. This past Wednesday, we all drew a graph for our personal emotional state throughout the semester and it was interesting to see what other people experienced. The general curve is normally a gradual peak, then a rather rapid descent that doesn't start to come back up until around the time the program ends. I would say that, on average, that is pretty correct. You feel like you're out-of-place with the culture and family and school... but then, you finally create those deeper friendships with people and you know where most of the things are, especially your favorite spots and it's time to leave. I've reached the point where I'm joking around with my host family and being myself... I can't help but feel as though it's in vain. I wish I had started feeling more comfortable earlier. I guess there's nothing I can do about it now.
God has been so gracious during this semester. It's been interesting, and eye-opening to say the least, to see the way the world lives outside of Colorado Springs and little Upland, IN. This is hardly the reflective blog that will most likely come when I've spent some time at home, but it's definitely starting to lean that way, isn't it?
Anyways, I got to make Crumble de Courgettes with my host mom last night for dinner and I'm going to miss that. I've been able to help out in the kitchen a lot more and it's done wonders for my mental health, I think. Not only do I get to talk to my host parents more on a deeper level, but I get to learn more things about food, French food. Just another blessing to add to the ever-growing list. Tonight, Fung is making Chinese food, which I'm totally pumped about because I've never really had legit home-cooked Chinese cuisine. After I'm done watching this, I'm going to go invade the kitchen and just watch. I'll try not to get in the way, but I feel like knowing how to make a true Chinese dish is a cool thing. I got to help a little bit last night when Fung marinated the chicken. He massaged oil, white wine, salt, and pepper into it, so I remember that much. It was fun to help with that, even though I was just pouring ingredients onto the chicken.
Tomorrow will be another academic day... finishing touches on the last paper and studying for my finals on Monday and beginning to review for the test on Wednesday. After Wednesday, I'm done. That will be a big weight off of my shoulders, but I won't be completely at ease until I'm on the plane home from Chicago... Apparently the holidays in France mean "STRIKE" to all the transportation workers. There's rumor that the train stations will go on strike soon and I'm praying and hoping that they hold off until I get to where I need to be. I mean, I love France, but when it's time to go home, it's time to go home!
There will probably be one more blog or so, then I'll be home. Wow. What a thought. Maybe I'll have to make another one... I mean, I am going to London...