What Made You Want To Study Abroad- March 12th 2014. A Helpful Reminder

March 12^th: “What made you want to study abroad?”

            Professor Kluver asked me why I wanted to study abroad. Under the spotlight I sounded like a politician running for office, "Hope & Change"! My response sounded great, but I didn’t truly answer the question. It was vague and meaningless. Why DID I want to study abroad??? I knew that I had wanted to since I was in seventh grade but unlike most, I made it a necessity, not an option. I applied to seven different colleges and their study abroad programs were a major part of my deciding factor. It wasn’t until I started to write a letter to my parents that I was able to come up with an answer. I am confident in my values and beliefs but I never felt that I “belonged” anywhere. I wanted a sense of belonging that I had not found in the United States and I thought by traveling the world, I might. Instead I found something much greater. While being here I felt a sense of anxiety because of schoolwork, culture shock, and being away from my parents and friends. When I found out a few of my fellow students were going to have a bible study every Monday night I decided I would start going. It made me feel a sense of relief but it was not enough. So I began to pray more, then I began to read the Bible more. Through, worship, study, and prayer I was reminded of what I already knew but had forgotten. My belonging is in God. It does not matter where I am, or who I am with, I am always with Him. I never realized how distant my relationship became with Him when I was back at home. Sure I went to Breakaway and did some bible studies but that was really the only time I would reach out to Him and if it was not “convenient” I would just skip. I was too preoccupied with my plans to learn His plans for me. Despite all of the deadlines, schedules, tasks, and duties in my busy life, nothing could ever be more convenient and comforting than being with Him. 

On Top of the World

March 9^th: On Top of the World

            Today I realized how much I appreciate the little things in life. My boyfriend and I have discussed how much we would like to expand our knowledge of the Bible. As an effort to do so we decided to read a chapter of Romans everyday and when possible discuss what we have read. The first thing I did when I got out of bed was pick up my notebook, pen, and Bible and began to read. Even though I had a quiz at the beginning of my class, after reading the Bible and reflecting on what I had read, I felt at ease. Grades are very important to me and cause me much stress because I like A’s and only A’s. Instead of going into my class feeling anxious, I felt that I knew everything I needed to know and it reflected in my grade. In the afternoon Mel, Kelsey and I decided to go for a jog. We have decided that we want to do a half marathon in Luca the day before we head back home and need to start training for it. At the beginning of our jog we felt worn out and were not sure how far we would be able to run but like Forrest Gump we just kept on running. The first couple of weeks we were here we had said we wanted to run to the castle but it was pretty far away and it never happened. Today, we did, we ran seven miles! Not only is the castle a far jog (for us anyways), but it is also at the top of a hill/mountain…whichever you would like to call it. It wasn’t an easy jog to the top but once we got there we had a hard time leaving. It overlooked the city and for a moment I felt I was on top of the world. Nothing could touch me, nothing could ruin this moment for me. In that moment I felt God fully embracing me. 

March 6th: A simple getaway

We got Friday off this week and many people were planning on traveling. I wanted to take full advantage of our 3-day weekend but I have been exhausted from all the traveling I have done. Mel, Jessie and I decided to make a simple trip to Verona. When we got there we walked to our “hostel” which ended up being an apartment. I loved feeling like we were in more of a house setting for once. Then we went out to explore. We shopped until we dropped. I am not a spender and I usually do not like shopping but this time it was actually very therapeutic. I got some shoes, a jacket, and a romper. It wasn’t until we were done that we realized we did not look at any of the tourist places we planned on seeing so we decided instead to wait to see them the next day. We planned on going out to the college bars but fell asleep around 11 p.m., 4p.m. back home and slept in till ten the next morning. It was the most sleep I have gotten in a long time. We got up, packed and went to see Juliet’s wall and a bridge someone recommended we see before leaving. Honestly, Juliet’s wall was nothing like I imagined but it was still pretty neat. It was the simplest trip but it was exactly what I needed to put myself at ease.  

Juliet's Wall