It's been 11 days since my return home and I still can not believe that I am now back in the United States! Every morning, before heading back to my daily routine of looking for work and taking the bus to school, I wake up expecting to hear voices of "que vas hacer?" or "te hablo mas tarde!", or some other phrase in a South American dialect. After a month of travel it is truly bizzare to not open my eyes to the polyester fabric of a tent, or half a dozen bunk beds with foriegn, snoring hostel goers.
The re-adjustment process has pushed me to stand in the kitchen for hours a day behind a spanish recipe book and online translator, scraping up some Argentine dish that either is from a memory of my travels, or from a recipe I would like to have had on my travels (like the medialunas I was able to share with all of you! Only... they didn't turn out quite right...).
Going in to visit your class was a pivotal point for my tying of loose ends, of declaring to myself that this journey is finished, but that the impact it has had on me will never leave. Talking about
it and sharing my adventures with you, with friends and with family has been the only way in which I could ever firmly preserve all the experiences that I have gone through.
When you travel, you change.
I can see myself in new dynamics now,
understanding that I can go to incredible lengths and overcome surreal feats, and do it all while
surving on so little. I never needed to dial any numbers on an Iphone, or upload the latest ap. I never needed to dry my hair with a blow dryer, or even shave my facial hair for that matter ( I eneded up with a pretty sweet beard). Really, 3 sets of clothe was plenty to survive on compared to my closet full of jackets and pants here at home that I can never decide on a perfect match with. Why would I ever need a car? I didn't even need one to travel to another country! And Fast Food?? Sorry Wendy's, I'd rather eat real beef.
My trip has given me a perspective of who I am, because while I was away, all the material and temporary things in my life were shed away to reveal my core being that never leaves.
I took all the lessons with me on the journey, all the ones that I have learned through life. And I brought so many more back home on the return flight. I feel ready to pursue the future, my career, a loved one, and finally real, strong and lasting relationships. Traveling has given me a understanding of what actualy holds importance in my life, and how to find importance in almost anything.
So my challenge to you is to take the risk of travel when you have the responsible and financial capabilities to do it! Work until that point in which you are able! Start learning a new language now so you can explore all the great treasures that another culture has to offer! Take advantage of everything that you are learning in school and in life right now!
Va! (go!)
Happy travels!
And until next time, nos vemos,
- Felipe Graham Muir
