Gracias a Chile
7.14.2015 Tuesday
I've been back in the United States for over two weeks. I miss Chile, but it's easier now. Just like I had a life there, I have a life here too. However, everyday something reminds me of what I left behind in South America and my soul yearns to return. The people, the culture, the environment, it all taught me so much and gave me something so invaluable. Yet, when I look ahead to my year in Peru, my chest becomes heavy and my heart races. A new unknown, a new adventure, awaits me and that's almost... paralyzing.
I know I can do it. Chile proved that to me. It will be scary at first, but Peru will change my life, will make me a better person, will teach me more than Chile probably did. One of the many joys of travel is the powerful emotions that consume you before, during, and after your voyage; my hesitation is but a requirement to attain a truly human experience. Yeah, I'm scared, but I'm ready to see where my life is headed.
Five weeks was not enough time in Chile. I had barely scratched the surface, barely become accustomed to my new life. And I know it wasn't perfect. Nowhere is perfect. But isn't there an allure to be found in imperfections, in miscommunication and embarrassment, in a world with its own struggles and problems that is different from what I knew? Chile feels like a dream... but if it had been perfect, then waking up would have been even more difficult.
Still, returning to my American life has been an odd, though quick, transition made challenging partly because my time in Chile was unreal, a fantasy. I was able to go on countless adventures and have innumerable marvelous experiences.
I visited a second continent.
I communicated, mostly successfully, in a second language.
I visited colorful cities that lay in the hills alongside the beach and the South Pacific Ocean.
I explored the historic houses of Pablo Neruda.
I walked the Plaza de Armas and saw government as well as historic buildings.
I played soccer with people from all around the world.
I studied the difficult history of a country with such kind and affectionate people that you would never imagine that many of them suffered horrific tragedies due to corrupt leaders.
I sampled new dishes and beverages.
I hiked through the Andes.
I marveled as buskers demonstrated their talents and bought handmade works of art from vendors in the streets.
I enjoyed a gigantic dinner while watching traditional Chilean dances at the restaurant Los Buenos Muchachos... twice.
I wore red, cheered and clapped as Chile advanced in the Copa America, eventually becoming champions, a final match I was unable to watch because I had already returned to Colorado.
I visited one of my synod's churches in South America and worshiped with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
I watched the sun disappear into the ocean as I sat on a giant rock protruding from the water.
I survived my first ever temblor, weighing in at 4.7 on the Richter Scale.
I rode through the mountains on horseback as stars began to appear in the sky.
I visited young boys who can't live at home, played games and shared smiles and laughter.
I met people who opened their arms to me, helped me to learn more about a language and a culture than I thought possible, and won my heart in the process.
I fulfilled dreams I didn't even know I had.
So maybe Chile wasn't perfect. Maybe there were struggles and bumps along the road. Maybe there were still plenty of once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Maybe my glamorized adventure in Chile wasn't a shining example of what a life in South America would be like. Maybe if I lived there full time my life would be more mundane, more average.
But, I would still be in Chile, in a country that I would happily make my home. Maybe if I built a life there it would be average and ordinary - but it's my life, my one chance, and no matter where I end up I'm going to make it extraordinary. Now, I am energized; I am excited to maneuver whatever turns life throws at me. I want to enjoy every minute of it, the good and the bad, the exciting and the day-to-day normalities. No matter where I end up, I am going to make something of my life. I am going to make it count.
And, no, that doesn't mean that I will be remembered, that I will somehow permanently change society. But I will be happy. I will trust in God and follow where he leads me. I will face my fears knowing that change is scary, but beneficial. I will grasp at every opportunity and never say no to adventure because I have seen how much the unpredictable can redefine and better me as an individual, how it has made me feel alive.
I can look back on my experiences and smile. If you ask me about my trip, I'll talk your ear off and show you hundreds of pictures. I can describe my experience to you in elaborate detail, yet you will never fully understand it or appreciate it; there's something beautiful and tragic about that. Tragic that you cannot comprehend, that you will not have the same feelings and emotions that I do about Chile. Simultaneously, beautiful that for every one of us our personal and unique story is awaiting to have chapters added to it.
So thank you for reading. I hope you have enjoyed what I have to say and that I have at least been able to somewhat convey with my words how much I dearly loved my every moment in Chile. I am eager to travel to Peru, to continue my journey and my writing.
Originally, I had wanted to write more in this entry, a sort of love letter to Chile, a letter that could describe my overflow of emotions, the physical yearning in my heart to return to Santiago. However, I cannot.
1. I do not have the words nor the writing skills to describe my indescribable emotions and 2. I believe that some of the things which we treasure so dearly lose a bit of their magic when we begin to share too much of them with others.
In the end, my adventure is my adventure. Now it's your turn to go find your own.
Peru, I'm coming for you.
Ciao!
"Not I, nor anyone else can travel that road for you.
You must travel it by yourself.
It is not far. It is within reach."
- Walt Whitman (Leaves of Grass)
Gracias por todo a Chile, mi amor.
I've been back in the United States for over two weeks. I miss Chile, but it's easier now. Just like I had a life there, I have a life here too. However, everyday something reminds me of what I left behind in South America and my soul yearns to return. The people, the culture, the environment, it all taught me so much and gave me something so invaluable. Yet, when I look ahead to my year in Peru, my chest becomes heavy and my heart races. A new unknown, a new adventure, awaits me and that's almost... paralyzing.
I know I can do it. Chile proved that to me. It will be scary at first, but Peru will change my life, will make me a better person, will teach me more than Chile probably did. One of the many joys of travel is the powerful emotions that consume you before, during, and after your voyage; my hesitation is but a requirement to attain a truly human experience. Yeah, I'm scared, but I'm ready to see where my life is headed.
Five weeks was not enough time in Chile. I had barely scratched the surface, barely become accustomed to my new life. And I know it wasn't perfect. Nowhere is perfect. But isn't there an allure to be found in imperfections, in miscommunication and embarrassment, in a world with its own struggles and problems that is different from what I knew? Chile feels like a dream... but if it had been perfect, then waking up would have been even more difficult.
Still, returning to my American life has been an odd, though quick, transition made challenging partly because my time in Chile was unreal, a fantasy. I was able to go on countless adventures and have innumerable marvelous experiences.
I visited a second continent.
I communicated, mostly successfully, in a second language.
I visited colorful cities that lay in the hills alongside the beach and the South Pacific Ocean.
I explored the historic houses of Pablo Neruda.
I walked the Plaza de Armas and saw government as well as historic buildings.
I played soccer with people from all around the world.
I studied the difficult history of a country with such kind and affectionate people that you would never imagine that many of them suffered horrific tragedies due to corrupt leaders.
I sampled new dishes and beverages.
I hiked through the Andes.
I marveled as buskers demonstrated their talents and bought handmade works of art from vendors in the streets.
I enjoyed a gigantic dinner while watching traditional Chilean dances at the restaurant Los Buenos Muchachos... twice.
I wore red, cheered and clapped as Chile advanced in the Copa America, eventually becoming champions, a final match I was unable to watch because I had already returned to Colorado.
I visited one of my synod's churches in South America and worshiped with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
I watched the sun disappear into the ocean as I sat on a giant rock protruding from the water.
I survived my first ever temblor, weighing in at 4.7 on the Richter Scale.
I rode through the mountains on horseback as stars began to appear in the sky.
I visited young boys who can't live at home, played games and shared smiles and laughter.
I met people who opened their arms to me, helped me to learn more about a language and a culture than I thought possible, and won my heart in the process.
I fulfilled dreams I didn't even know I had.
So maybe Chile wasn't perfect. Maybe there were struggles and bumps along the road. Maybe there were still plenty of once-in-a-lifetime experiences. Maybe my glamorized adventure in Chile wasn't a shining example of what a life in South America would be like. Maybe if I lived there full time my life would be more mundane, more average.
But, I would still be in Chile, in a country that I would happily make my home. Maybe if I built a life there it would be average and ordinary - but it's my life, my one chance, and no matter where I end up I'm going to make it extraordinary. Now, I am energized; I am excited to maneuver whatever turns life throws at me. I want to enjoy every minute of it, the good and the bad, the exciting and the day-to-day normalities. No matter where I end up, I am going to make something of my life. I am going to make it count.
And, no, that doesn't mean that I will be remembered, that I will somehow permanently change society. But I will be happy. I will trust in God and follow where he leads me. I will face my fears knowing that change is scary, but beneficial. I will grasp at every opportunity and never say no to adventure because I have seen how much the unpredictable can redefine and better me as an individual, how it has made me feel alive.
I can look back on my experiences and smile. If you ask me about my trip, I'll talk your ear off and show you hundreds of pictures. I can describe my experience to you in elaborate detail, yet you will never fully understand it or appreciate it; there's something beautiful and tragic about that. Tragic that you cannot comprehend, that you will not have the same feelings and emotions that I do about Chile. Simultaneously, beautiful that for every one of us our personal and unique story is awaiting to have chapters added to it.
So thank you for reading. I hope you have enjoyed what I have to say and that I have at least been able to somewhat convey with my words how much I dearly loved my every moment in Chile. I am eager to travel to Peru, to continue my journey and my writing.
Originally, I had wanted to write more in this entry, a sort of love letter to Chile, a letter that could describe my overflow of emotions, the physical yearning in my heart to return to Santiago. However, I cannot.
1. I do not have the words nor the writing skills to describe my indescribable emotions and 2. I believe that some of the things which we treasure so dearly lose a bit of their magic when we begin to share too much of them with others.
In the end, my adventure is my adventure. Now it's your turn to go find your own.
Peru, I'm coming for you.
Ciao!
"Not I, nor anyone else can travel that road for you.
You must travel it by yourself.
It is not far. It is within reach."
- Walt Whitman (Leaves of Grass)
Gracias por todo a Chile, mi amor.
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