The summer is starting to settle down, and so am I. I am finally getting used to living in the
same place for more than 3 days. I will
not lie; it was a tough adjustment coming home, not a bad one, just hard. Culture shock is definitely a real thing! For a few days I came home and felt like an
outsider; it took some time to catch up with everyone and regain my sense of
belonging.
51 days after the adventure of my lifetime, I find myself editing photos from World Tour in the gatehouse at Shakamak State Park. I work the evening shift and people tend to slow down as the night rolls on which leaves me alone in the gatehouse 5-6 hours every shift. It sounds boring because it is, but I cannot say that I mind it. Actually, the peaceful times in the park after everyone has left are what make this job worth it. After the semester I just had, I welcome any chance to just sit down and relax.
As work slows down in the evenings I try to edit a couple cities-worth of photos every night. Every photo gives me a new memory to reflect on or something new to appreciate. I am finally realizing how awesome it all was, and how blessed I was to be able to experience it. The diversity of the places I have been is hard for even me to comprehend. On the trip we were shuffled from place to place without much time to think and appreciate it all. Thank goodness for pictures! They have allowed me to relive my trip, the good and the bad.
Along with the pictures I remember the stress I went through trying to get homework and my project done. I look back at the 10 days of madness I had to put together my project board and it is obvious, only God would have been able to get me through that. Not only did he get me through it, he guided me through a project I am proud to call my own. I even presented it to the President of Ball State, Jo Ann Gora herself. After my project was finished that week I had some fantastic days making up for lost time with all of my friends. For once I was sad to leave Muncie; I had just arrived it seemed like and all my friends were leaving for the semester. At least I can look forward to seeing them when I go back in August!
As one can imagine, I have been drilled by everyone since I have been home. What was your favorite place? What was (insert country) like? What was the weirdest food you ate? Would you go back? Even the simplest question prompts the most difficult answer. Traveling the world is not something that can be understood. Sure I could talk until I was blue in the face and show you every single one of my photos, but until you have experienced the culture and stumbled your way through everyday life in a different country you will not understand it.
The thing that strengthened my experiences, appreciation, and understanding of life around the world is the fact that God walked with me every step of the way. Living in the world, he showed me a greater understanding of life itself, what is really important, what to strive for in life, and how to be content with even the littlest things. Even now, 51 days later, it is hard for me to comprehend that there was once a time on WT5 when all I wanted was to be able to read a restaurant menu, to have a good seat on the plane, to stay at a hotel with free internet access, or to have ten minutes of alone time. The simplest things made me happy. I have everything I have ever wanted in life at home right now, yet I still find things to make me grumpy. What is up with that? Another thing, I learned really quickly last semester is how to take a step back from the situation and re-evaluate. Every time I got upset or caught up in a bad situation, I found God waiting patiently to share his peace. It is little lessons like these that I will keep with me for the rest of my life. Yeah this trip was awesome! I saw countries and cities that people only dream of visiting. I stood before some of the best architecture in the world; but even more importantly, God taught me how to live.
51 days after the adventure of my lifetime, I find myself editing photos from World Tour in the gatehouse at Shakamak State Park. I work the evening shift and people tend to slow down as the night rolls on which leaves me alone in the gatehouse 5-6 hours every shift. It sounds boring because it is, but I cannot say that I mind it. Actually, the peaceful times in the park after everyone has left are what make this job worth it. After the semester I just had, I welcome any chance to just sit down and relax.
As work slows down in the evenings I try to edit a couple cities-worth of photos every night. Every photo gives me a new memory to reflect on or something new to appreciate. I am finally realizing how awesome it all was, and how blessed I was to be able to experience it. The diversity of the places I have been is hard for even me to comprehend. On the trip we were shuffled from place to place without much time to think and appreciate it all. Thank goodness for pictures! They have allowed me to relive my trip, the good and the bad.
Along with the pictures I remember the stress I went through trying to get homework and my project done. I look back at the 10 days of madness I had to put together my project board and it is obvious, only God would have been able to get me through that. Not only did he get me through it, he guided me through a project I am proud to call my own. I even presented it to the President of Ball State, Jo Ann Gora herself. After my project was finished that week I had some fantastic days making up for lost time with all of my friends. For once I was sad to leave Muncie; I had just arrived it seemed like and all my friends were leaving for the semester. At least I can look forward to seeing them when I go back in August!
As one can imagine, I have been drilled by everyone since I have been home. What was your favorite place? What was (insert country) like? What was the weirdest food you ate? Would you go back? Even the simplest question prompts the most difficult answer. Traveling the world is not something that can be understood. Sure I could talk until I was blue in the face and show you every single one of my photos, but until you have experienced the culture and stumbled your way through everyday life in a different country you will not understand it.
The thing that strengthened my experiences, appreciation, and understanding of life around the world is the fact that God walked with me every step of the way. Living in the world, he showed me a greater understanding of life itself, what is really important, what to strive for in life, and how to be content with even the littlest things. Even now, 51 days later, it is hard for me to comprehend that there was once a time on WT5 when all I wanted was to be able to read a restaurant menu, to have a good seat on the plane, to stay at a hotel with free internet access, or to have ten minutes of alone time. The simplest things made me happy. I have everything I have ever wanted in life at home right now, yet I still find things to make me grumpy. What is up with that? Another thing, I learned really quickly last semester is how to take a step back from the situation and re-evaluate. Every time I got upset or caught up in a bad situation, I found God waiting patiently to share his peace. It is little lessons like these that I will keep with me for the rest of my life. Yeah this trip was awesome! I saw countries and cities that people only dream of visiting. I stood before some of the best architecture in the world; but even more importantly, God taught me how to live.
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