A year of preparing. Months of waiting. Seven shots and daily Anti-Malaria pills. Trying to pack your life in one bag. The bittersweet goodbyes. Fourteen individuals looking for something more.
In life there are very little things I know for certain, but one thing I have always felt to be intrinsically true to the core —that the world is too vast and too intricate for humans to only see one perspective, one piece of the larger whole. For me, it has never been enough to live in Canada and call myself a Canadian. My sense of place has always been mixed up in the clouds somewhere. Maybe it is my mind that is in the clouds, wishing for something similar to a combustion of fantasy and reality. A chance to escape, yet a chance to connect. While I love the people that surround my life, and love the security of not having to worry about purifying my own water, or contracting malaria from mosquito bites, or various other things I take for granted, I have never felt at home here. They say the home is where the heart is, well my heart does not just have one home. It was made to be nomadic.
In 5 hours I will be on a plane heading into a country that just 3 days ago experienced tear gas attacks and violent riots in Uganda’s capital city, Kampala. Although there is unpredictability and risk involved in an experience like this, I cannot wait to be among the Ugandan people, learning, growing, and seeing the world from their perspective. I cannot wait to see the beauty that lies there, among the people and in the landscape. To a summer spent in my new home —in the Pearl of Africa!
Thank you to everyone who has supported me over this past year. It means the world. To my friends and family: I will miss and love you. See you August 20th.
Good luck and God bless. Your heart may be nomadic but it certaintly leaves and impression wherever it goes.
ReplyDeleteI could not be more excited for (or jealous of) someone I've never met. This time last year I was a completely different person than I am right now, and that is so largely due to the life-altering three and a half months I spent in Kampala as a BB student. You are going to have the time of your life, meet people unlike any you've ever met before, and you're going to come home changed...not to mention so sad that you're not still there! I cannot wait to follow you on this journey. I hope you're able (or want) to blog regularly because honestly, I would give anything to be right there with you right now! I know might seem a little crazy...but I think you'll understand a little better in August. Have a blast, and soak it all in! (...and if you happen to meet Andy, say hi to him for me ;) )
ReplyDeleteTina
Thank you Jess, you are sweet!
ReplyDeleteSorry about this delayed response...I have been having problems logging on to my blog. Hence why I havent posted any new blogs.
Thank you so much Tina for your message, you left quite a mark over here at the comboni house. Everyone misses you. I honestly don't know if I am getting what I should be getting from this experience, but hopefully it all becomes clear in a month! I am not sure who Andy is :S Maybe he left lol.