I must preface this blog with a disclaimer. I’m sitting in Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. I got 4 hours of sleep last night, have been up for 15 hours, and have another 6 or 7 before I go home. For those reasons, I apologize for any gramatical/spelling mistakes in this post, and for general cheesiness.
But like I said: I’m sitting in Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport.The
same place I sat four months ago, anxiously waiting to leave for Paris.
I’m lost for words. This is a particularly peculiar
experience for me, as I always have something to say. And yet I can’t find
them…
I could find them last night, however. Lying in bed after…
embracing privileges denied to 20-year-olds in the U.S., I reflected on the
experiences of this past semester. What I felt was a spectrum of emotions capable
of putting any pubescent girl to shame.
Melancholy that the program was ending; Excitement to return home; Giddiness… but that may have had more to do with the night’s
activities, and less with the fact that I was hours away from returning home; Among an array of countless others.
I reminisced of my times spent with other students. It was a
goal of mine to socialize with people outside of my American program, a goal I
feel I accomplished successfully. In my classes, I had the privilege to become
good friends from students all over the world. I will never forget the people I
have met—from Brazil, to the countries of Scandinavia, from Colombia to Cuba,
from Palestine to China. I learned a lot in the classroom; including that the
people present in said classrooms, weren’t all that different from each other. Education
is the great equalizer, I found.
In the classroom, politics didn’t apply. It did not matter
who was in conflict with whom. Trade relations or treaty negotiations were
never recognized. Not once, did I feel animosity from or towards another
student. We are not where we come from. We are people. I’ve been taught since Kindergarten
not to stereotype—that you can’t place people into groups. This trip has really
solidified that idea for me.
Of all the many things I have learned from this experience,
and I am grateful to have learned so very much, that is what I value most: we
are all people. All of us children of God (and no, I have no interest in
getting into a religious debate).
I have lived in a foreign country. I have taken
university-level courses in a foreign language. I have successfully navigated
through Paris, and countless other cities by myself. I have learned so much:
about France, about the world, about myself. I thank you for having an interest
in my thoughts and findings, and appreciate those who have showed me so much
support. I love you all endlessly, and wish you all the best with your future
adventures.
Love,
Evie
Love,
Evie
