While
being 4,317 miles away from home for the past four months, there have been several
phrases that I have found myself repeating and reflecting on…
1. YOLO:
Although I don’t usually recommend this as a code to
live by, I have caught myself saying this, and meaning it, more times than I would
like to admit. But, to a degree, it’s the truth. You have to make difficult
decisions here, and the only way to justify them is by realizing that this
studying abroad experience is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be taken
advantage of. I am in this incredible place very far from home and who knows if
I’ll ever have the opportunity to come back. With only one life, on this earth
anyway, now is my chance. You don’t just drop down a week’s worth of stipend to
watch a play, or stand for an hour and a half in the cold to see fireworks, or
spend hours in a bus station at one o'clock in the morning because you can do those
things every day. You do it because watching that show on that stage has been
your dream since you were a child, you stand in the cold for ten minutes of fireworks because you are experiencing an iconic moment with 10,000 other
people, you sit miserable in that bus station because you have decided that
those few dreary hours is completely worth the moments of joy, discovery, and
excitement that has come as a result. Of course, wisdom and decision-making is
imperative. Sometimes you have to say no to the place that you have always
wanted to go to or an event you wish you could experience, but sometimes you
have to quiet that over-analyzing, paranoid part of you, and simply do
it…because you only live once.
2. Time Flies:
As of today I have one month and three days before I
return home. It’s unbelievable how quickly it’s approaching. The thought of
going home is very bittersweet. I miss home so much and I know I’ll be
overwhelmingly glad to be back, yet it’s been such a wonderful time here, and
there’s still so much I want to see and do. I can only pray that God will give
me the opportunity to come back. Chester has truly become a second home; I hate
to say good-bye.
3. Trust in God:
I know this is very general and certainly does not
just apply to these five months here, but it’s a very good thing to remind
myself of. I don’t say this to puff myself up: “Oh, look how well I trust God
now that I've been pushed outside of my comfort zone.” I only wish that was the
case. I still have much to learn and always will; going away has, by no means, changed
that. Nevertheless, this is the most important phrase to live by here and
elsewhere. If only it was some sort of Sabrina transformation where all of the
sudden I was spectacularly spiritually mature, wise, and faithful (the new
wardrobe and makeover would be very welcome too), but I have seen God work in
me here, and I hope it will be an evidence to his grace when I return. So in
Europe and everywhere, trust God.
Four
months of my adventure are memories now, but I still have one month and three
days to live and experience, and I intend to do just that.
