Taking the long way

I keep driving down highways and streets, trying desperately to memorize everything and frame it in my mind one last time before I leave on Monday. I'm not sure why I can't stop doing this - it's not like three months is forever, but right now it feels like three years and I know that when I get on that plane I'm creating a new era in my life: the post-Europe days. This era won't start until I return home again and the months I spend in Europe will probably seem disconnected from the rest of my life, too short to be considered an era on its own. Once I come back to Minneapolis all of my memories will be thought of in terms of before or after Europe and will remain bookmarked that way for years. This is strange to realize. But it's also kind of neat.