When the last day dawned, Val couldn’t wait to tell Bri all about the trip and show her mom the photos. She wanted to tell John all about the ESAG projects and give out her souvenirs. She wanted to see Jared. As a friend or as a boyfriend, she didn’t know yet.

The group was lively at breakfast as they chatted in anticipation of heading home. Everyone went around the table telling the parts they had liked best about the trip and what they planned to do at home. They had all enjoyed the trip and were impressed with the ESAG projects. The trip was sure to result in increased support from people connected to the trip participants once they got home. Charles and Jane renewed their dedication and donations to ESAG and promised to come on a future trip. Frank and Brian were going to get more involved in their local ESAG chapter. Jerry had figured out some answers to his career change questions and no longer thought he’d switch to a career in international development. He would stay in engineering but find some other outlets to fill his volunteering urge.

Val wasn’t sure what her biggest takeaway from the trip was. She was very impressed with the projects and what ESAG was doing on the ground. She wanted to show John all the photos and tell him—and the office—all about it. Maybe she would get involved with the chapter that John led or maybe she would get involved with another group. She did like the child sponsorship model that one nonprofit provided for the school where they served lunch.

Just as importantly, she learned what she needed from Adam, and what she needed, he couldn’t provide. That door had finally closed.

Every relationship was about taking a chance. Taking a chance that this person would be the right fit, taking a chance that you wouldn’t get your heart broken, and taking a chance that it would be worth the time and effort invested. In the case of Adam, the chance didn’t work out, but in the case of her Rwanda trip, her taking a chance was just what she needed. She loved being on the trip and seeing Rwanda. She was grateful to meet the group members and spend time with them. The trip scratched her itch for adventure yet made her realize her longing for home.

After the group finished their leisurely breakfast, they scattered to return to their rooms to pack up for the return home. Val was about to go to her room when Charles waved her over to the living room. She had seen Jane go back to their room already, so Val was intrigued.

“Hey, Charles,” she said. “What’s up?”

“I overheard you and Jane talking yesterday on the bus,” he said. “I wanted to give you my side of it.” He paused. “I knew as soon as I saw Jane that she was for me. Her smile, her confidence, and the way she talked with people. I thought she would see the same in me and we’d ride off into the sunset, but, as she told you, that wasn’t what happened at first. She wasn’t crazy about me, although any time I spent with her only solidified my feelings, so I stepped back. I tried to figure it out. I’m an engineer at heart; solving problems is my specialty.

He continued on with a smile, “After thinking about it, I decided that I would do whatever needed to be done to show Jane that I was serious and that I would be the right choice for her. I started finding ways to show up around her. Not asking her out, just being near. Then, after she seemed used to me being around, I stepped it up by asking her out. I knew our first date hadn’t impressed her, so I pulled out all the stops. I planned a special date with all her favorite things. That seemed to tip the balance. After that, she warmed to me. Each time I put more effort into dating her, it paid off with more affection from her.

“Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t an easy ‘you put in effort and it all works out’ type of story. We did eventually get married, but I want you to know that I was willing to do what I had to do to win her heart. I don’t think it was a conscious decision on her part to pick me though. I was just around, and then we dated, and then we grew serious. I think if she felt there was a moment that she had to ‘pick’ me or make a decision based on facts, it might not have gone my way. She just let it grow; she let her feelings develop until they were just as strong as mine.

“Judging from what she says, she doesn’t regret it,” Charles said. He paused again. “It seems to me that you’re trying too hard to make decisions and figure out the long-term consequences of things. Sometimes, you just have to go with the flow. If life is putting someone in front of you, what’s the harm in seeing how it goes?” He smiled at her.

Val didn’t know how to respond. Charles was sly. She gave him credit for reading her situation accurately. “Thanks, Charles. I do think I get caught up in the future at the expense of the present in a lot of ways. Jane is really lucky to have you—or should I say you two are lucky to have each other.” They went their separate ways to their rooms to finish packing.

Once the team had packed and gathered all of their luggage, it was time to load the vans. Val tossed her fully loaded backpack into the back of the van and sat by the window. The group boarded, and they drove off to the city. They had their last lunch at a restaurant in downtown Kigali with a fancy buffet and sodas with ice. It seemed a little too much after all the rural life they had seen in the past week, but it was refreshing to have a cold Coke.

When they arrived at the airport, they waited in several lines, one for passport verification, one for bag check, one for security, and one for boarding, until finally, they were seated on the plane to leave. The flight was delayed in taking off but finally departed for Europe. Val tried to sleep on the flight but was restless. She kept having snippets of dreams when she did doze.

The plane landed in Brussels. Now that Val knew the basic layout of the airport, she headed to the duty-free store and the Starbucks. Charles and Jane were going to stay in Brussels for a few days to enjoy the sights. Brian, Frank, and Jerry all had different flights from Brussels back to the States. After hugging goodbye at the gate, everyone went their separate ways and Val was on her own with a huge coffee and a brownie. She wasn’t ashamed to have a brownie for breakfast; desserts like this rich chocolate delight were not common in Rwanda. She missed them and was surprised how well she did without them considering her sweet tooth was the size of Texas.

Before she was ready, it was time to get on her last flight. As much as she wanted to be home to tell everyone about the trip and give her souvenirs out to her friends, she was sad the trip was ending. It was wonderful and exhilarating. But now, it was time to return to her regular life. She was surprised how excited she was to get back to her routines.

This trip had solidified that she wanted both travel and home. She decided that she should plan and book another trip shortly after she got back. This way she could fit adventure into her life without upending everything. She could stretch her boundaries in her travels, exploring the far reaches of the globe, but always return to her home base. Her family, her friends, even her job, were all parts of the life she wanted to keep. A life that she loved.