On the eve of our closing presentation signaling the true and final end of the Summer of Service in Cheraw, I feel oddly melancholy. Hilary is playing DDR with some of our guests for the weekend (including the freshman BNs, or the "babies" as we so endearingly call them) and Jack's Mannequin is playing on my laptop as I prepare my speech for the morrow. It seems that we have been transported back to the very beginning of the summer where all of us sat pensively, ready to embark on a summer filled with new people,experiences, and lessons to be learned. Now we sit, together but alone with our thoughts, not thinking of the fresh promise of the summer of service but rather its closing. It seems rather surreal, honestly - as soon as I really feel I've truly become a part of the community, our time here is done. This past week we have been welcomed and thanked by more groups than I ever would have expected. We had dinner with Mayor Scott Hunter and some friends at Brady's restaurant (the "prom" restaurant in town) and one of the dinner guests, Woodie Hamden, wrote us this poem to send us off, called "Friends Along the Way" -  "I'm really glad to have met you and hope you've been happy here, In the "Prettiest Town in Dixie" that we still all hold so dear. We know you'll soon be leaving us, we'll hate to say goodbye, The bonds of friends together are the bonds I hope we'll tie. We're pleased that you chose Cheraw, so when you're far away My wish is that you'll think of us, your friends along the way. The whole town is going to miss you, each and every one, So y'all come back to see us when all your work is done. To all of you friendshps, I promise we'll always treasure, Because it's young students like you that make our life a pleasure." The bittersweet taste of goodbye still lingers in my mouth, though it isn't quite time to leave what's been our home for over two months. I can only say this summer has truly opened my eyes to what it's like to become a part of a community as a total outsider. More than that, it's changed who I am and helped me see my fellow BNs in a way I didn't quite grasp before - we are now truly a family.