Study abroad hangover // benefits of travel

"How was your semester abroad?!" 

I love/dread being asked this question. On one hand I'm more than thrilled to talk about the best semester of my entire life, yet on the other I feel discouraged. How am I supposed to fit a whole semester of experiences into one or two sentences? And even if I had a whole day to explain everything, every person's experience is only valuable as he or she experiences them, so sometimes I'm left feeling misunderstood and frustrated. It's true of most scenarios, plus people are simply trying to make conversation when they ask these questions. I decided if I could sit down and give a satisfactory answer of how my semester abroad was, I would answer by rambling on about how it made me a better person. In reality, it did. It helped me realize the person I was at that point in my life, where I wanted to be, and how I needed to get there. I feel ALIVE. I feel more childlike. More consumed by beautiful things. More affected by wonder. More connected to the universe and its creator. (ok ok I know I'm a double cheeseburger but bear with me for some more words)

I think I have a study abroad hangover. I'm already planning on my next travels, as I see it to be the only cure. I've gotten only a taste of the world, and I'm more than grateful for that taste, but I'm craving to see more of it. Many people say that travel is the only thing you can buy that makes you richer. While my empty pockets might not support this statement, I agree enormously after spending this past semester studying architecture in Italy and traveling to 10 other countries along the way.  That being said, studying abroad gave me much more than I bargained for. It gave me new eyes, a new way of seeing things. I left the states for the first time ever back in January with what I thought was an open mind and a clear grip on the world we live in. I couldn’t have been blinder. In actuality my mind was only cracked open only a sliver and I had no idea just how big and wide and deep the world could be. I thought I was big and important, yet we as individuals are so small in comparison to the world around us.  

For me, traveling abroad was like hitting a “reset” button. Every new place I went pushed me out of my comfort zone. When we live our daily lives it’s easy to fall into the routine of just getting by, but when we are forced out of our comfort zones, life has a way of making us grow more into the role we were created for. You truly begin to see, not just look. Travel, exploration, experiencing is necessary to our own growth. We are forced to us ask new questions and answer old ones. Everyplace around the world contains its own people that practice their own traditions and carry out their own way of life. Each group has their own questions and their own answers. Each place is a small puzzle piece fitting together to literally make up the mass of the world, but to also make up the soul of the world. When we experience these places, we have the opportunity to piece together this puzzle of humanity. Not only do we develop our own selves, we also contribute to the world when we take our new ways of seeing to our own homes and any other place we go.

 studying abroad granted me a newfound sense of adventure and independence. It reinforced the skills I gained when I walked out of my parents’ arms and made my first steps onto Clemson’s campus as a freshman just three short years ago (wait wut). I remember my high school self being just as intimidated by college as I was by any European form of public transportation in January. Living in a new place allowed me to live in the moment more, relying on my own devices and trusting in God. Without independence, one couldn’t survive a few days, much less a whole semester in a foreign country. If you kept up with my other blog you know that I learned this really quickly when a group of us decided to go skiing in the Alps. After skiing across the border from Italy into Switzerland, I somehow got separated from my friends. I frantically searched around and began to panic. Where were my friends? Why did I lose them? How would I get home? After searching with no sight of anyone I knew I had two options: cry or keep skiing. Maybe I did a little of both, but in the end I decided to keep skiing. As I raced down the mountain (by race I mean slowly skied with extra caution) I had this moment of self-empowerment where I threw up my ski poles and let out a loud squeal. No doubt the people around me thought I had lost it, and maybe I had, but it was in that moment that I felt completely independent. If I could do this, what I had thought to be impossible only moments earlier, what else could I accomplish in my life?

Not only did I gain more independence, studying abroad taught me to give up the illusion of control and recognize the important things in life. Missing a train, miscommunicating in a foreign language, or misreading directions are all times that lead to these realizations. In the grand scheme of things, these moments of inconvenience are only that -- inconveniences and not the end of the world. After a while I began to realize that there is little that I could control in my life in a foreign country, and often in life as a whole. We can only control our reaction to circumstances. As a result, missing a train or misunderstanding directions became adventures in disguise rather than huge obstacles to throw off my day. Just the same, living and traveling in another country taught me to realize the important things in life. Some things that seem like a big deal are in actuality very insignificant. 

Besides being students of architecture, studying abroad made us students of life. To say that this past semester was the best of my entire educational career is an understatement. These experiences will stay with me always, and I am immensely grateful for the opportunities. traveling brought new eyes, new perspectives, independence, and a realization of what’s important into my life. Then again, these opportunities are there for the taking every day no matter where we are, we just have to remember to take them. 

Being back has been good. I'm still adjusting to living at home again, but I'm beginning to think this summer is also just an adventure in disguise. We shall see. 

Happy Tuesday, dearest readers!