My first memory of traveling is tears. I was five years old and on a plane to the Philippines, and I was sobbing uncontrollably (and also vomiting from motion-sickness). My parents and I were on our way to visit my mom’s family for a month in early 1995, and I was sad to be leaving my friends and school and home—a whole month seemed like an eternity to me!

I was also nervous because I didn’t know what to expect in the Philippines. All my five years had only been in Virginia, and meeting new family members and having to make new friends made me very anxious. And on top of that, being on a plane for so long was totally disorienting and uncomfortable.

Fast forward to the return-flight home: again, tears and sobbing, but this time it was because I didn’t want to leave my family in the Philippines. It had been a wonderful month, and I had gotten very close with my cousins, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. I remember that it hurt so much to have to leave them that all I could do was cry.

(As a side note: Thank you Mom and Dad for putting up with all of my tears! I must have been great company on the 20+ hour flights.)

Really, I don’t think I’m that different than my five-year-old self. As the date of our first flight approaches, what I’m most nervous about is how homesick I will be. I’ve already warned Vikram that I’ll likely (okay, definitely) be in tears in the airport and on the flight.

But facing homesickness and being away from my parents, family, and friends will be a new experience that, in its own weird way, I look forward to facing—not because it will be enjoyable to be homesick, but because it will force me to stretch out of my comfort zone.

And I’m optimistic that, just like my five-year-old self, the tears shed at the beginning of this new adventure will turn into irreplaceable memories by the end.