"Another morning, another shift"... those were the thoughts I woke up with most of my workdays. Opening my eyes, I would usually notice a sweet note from Natashenka. Natasha lived with me. She loved writing cute notes with all sorts of messages. One of them, for example: "Good morning, didn't want to wake you, I'm downstairs on the internet, come down if you want :*"

I loved waking up and seeing messages from her. It was an instant boost of strength and energy. After changing into my work clothes, I would slather my body in a ton of sunscreen because the sun was scorching and I was afraid of getting burned.

Afterward, grabbing all the necessary things, I would run to 7-Eleven or Dunkin' Donuts to get coffee. It wasn't far; I'd put on some music and walk, lost in my thoughts, for a hot, invigorating coffee (sometimes a cold one).

"Someday this will end, I'll be back home again, immersed in my own worries... what is it like to leave?... Okay, need to get that out of my head."

For the last few months, I had been struggling not to think about it.

I was so used to running to Aika and Masha before work, asking if they were awake and if they were coming with me for coffee. I loved hugging them in the morning; they had become so dear to me. They worked with me and lived nearby. I loved dreaming with them in the morning about getting to work on my favorite water slide so we could splash ourselves with water and periodically hide from the sun, which wasn't possible on the dry slides. And in the evening, I loved dreaming with them, making plans, hanging out...

I loved seeing Natasha's smile in the morning and watching the line at the park form even before it opened...

I loved watching the guys who worked with us come down, ready for a hard day's work. These people became close to me. Every morning, I heard "good morning" hundreds of times, spoken with a smile.

In the morning, we would enter the park and wait for the manager to assign us to the slides. During this time, Natasha and I would hold hands, letting them know we wanted to work together. Natasha and I became like two sisters; we even looked alike, and strangers often asked if we were sisters. We worked together on the same slide for almost the whole summer. They put us there almost every time because we did our job very well :)

Of course, it wasn't without adventures... something was always happening...

Every workday seemed endless. Every day I got more and more tired of the kids who asked a bunch of questions and were constantly screaming loudly. The only thing that saved me was talking to Natasha. We would shout to each other. We worked on the same slide, but one person was at the top and the other at the bottom. We switched every hour.

We only had one break, and it was only 15 minutes. I would run to my room or Masha and Aika's room. Our rooms opened without a key. You might ask: "How?" We just opened the window and opened the door from the inside))) that's how we visited each other.

Work ended at 6. Natasha and I would run to relax and enjoy our freedom, discussing when we had a day off and what we would do.

In the evenings, we would either meet our American friends and have a fun time, or just hang out together... I remember with a smile the time when Danny and Nate brought treats, and we would sit in our room, talking, learning new words))) With a touch of sadness, I remember getting on the bus after work to go to the neighboring town to meet a dear person.

And our kitchen hangouts... It was a wonderful time...

I want to bring it all back... To spend time with Natashenka, to run 11 km with Aika, to have heartfelt conversations with Masha, to have fun with Maya, to watch Domenic's training... I could list forever... I met so many good people that summer.

That was my normal life there. It had everything: wonderful friends, work, travel, a nice room... Everything was as if I had changed my life and now it would always be like this...

I felt good, calm...

And then that terrible last week of August came, which shattered my little world... took away everything I had...