Week 5: A look back

Do you ever wake up in the morning and your body doesn’t want to move but you’re mind can’t sit still.  Some mornings I have a million things going through my head.  In New York it used to be things like ¨what do I need to get done today¨, or ¨ how am I going to study for that test and write that 5 page essay tonight?¨.  I wake up in Chile and think ¨how would you conjugate that verb¨ or ¨what’s the correct way to say this sentence in Spanish.¨ My thoughts have suddenly been commandeered by the Spanish language.  My life revolves around communicating in a different language and learning a new culture. 

One day I thought ¨how did I even end up in this foreign place?¨  It all happened during that one afternoon at St. John’s University when I had the epiphany I was able to study abroad again.  It has changed my life and brought me to ¨La tierra final¨ or lands end as we call it in English.  Chile is a country where at its most southern point you can get in a boat and go all the way around the world without hitting another piece of land.  It’s pretty spectacular if you think about it. There is no other country quite like this one.  It has a remarkable variety of landscapes, including mountains, deserts, glaciers, and the ocean.   Some days I wake up and look out of my bathroom window at the clear view (if the Santiago smog has subsided) of the Andes Mountains and think ¨Wow I am so lucky¨. 

Its funny how a person’s life can change so dramatically and yet after a short period of time have it seem like nothing has changed at all.  We all get caught up in our day to day activities and time passes, but I’m at a point right now where it’s just about accelerating my adventure.  The clock is ticking very quickly, and I could easily sit back, enjoy the ride of the next 2 months in Santiago and sit in the sun…OR seize every single other opportunity that is possible.  Of my plan is the latter. 

After talking with two famous artists that have been staying at my house, I can recognize all of the opportunities I have in front of me.  Susana Wald, a woman of many talents including speaking somewhere around 5 languages, advised me to “aprovechar” or do everything I can in my short period of time here.  After a long conversation about where my life was going and where her life had been, I decided that I’m on a mission to ¨conocer Chile¨ or to experience everything.

On a quick side note, Susana Wald and Ludwig Zeller (the famous artists) currently live in Mexico, but spent many years living in both Santiago and Canada.  They were on a visit back to Santiago for an exhibition of Ludwig’s surrealist art.  When I met Ludwig, I didn’t know what a big deal he was, but when I walked into his exhibition which was purely dedicated to him, I was able to recognize immediately what he had dedicated a huge part of his life to.  It was pretty amazing to see how much one person is able to accomplish in their life. This warm hearted couple sparked me to go out and seize every opportunity.  They gave me more inspiration to dream big and not let any obstacles stop you from your goal.  I hope to remember these words of wisdom long after my South American adventure is over.