Don't Cry for Me Argentina

...The truth is I really left you, all through those wild days, my mad existence, I've kept my promise, now keep your distance.

That was our story. The story that's come and gone. The story of my life for the past 3 months, and the incredible experience that will mark a huge point in my life, and leave me with unforgettable memories. Don't you always expect that when you travel the world it will feel a certain way, you go there with expectations, and a feeling of wonder? Well at least I went to South America with those feelings. Now as I sit here on the plane, thinking over all that's happened, I realize that those countries and cultures are still part of a world filled with pain and suffering, and that no matter how legendary or incredible a certain place is, it is still going to be affected by the world's brokenness. So I believe that what it really means to experience another culture is, in understanding that brokenness, to soak up the essence of what you find, and not in comparison to your own country, to love it for it's own. Not only have I really come to appreciate Argentina's culture, I have also learned a lot of things about life from it. I have learned how very big and vast this little planet really can be, and how every person I saw, every thing I touched, every step I took, had been done once before by some other person/s. Someone who had their own whole life, a life with joys and sorrows, personality and preferences, lovers and enemies, and that they too will live their lives just as I live mine, that the will still be there when I return home, all completely detached from me. It is all too profound for me to ever fully grasp, but I know one thing now, that I should never underestimate the vastness of mankind and my littleness in the complexity of humanity. Another important thing I've learned from this trip is confidence. I am a very timid and frightenable person by nature, and putting that in the stress and busyness of traveling in a foreign country makes me feel like my whole world is being turned upside down. Everything familiar and all that I have learned to trust is pulled from underneath my very own feet, everything is foreign and unfamiliar even my own language is compromised, you'ld just feel like you want to curl up and estrange your self from the world itself. This is how I felt when I first came to South America. I didn't care how many cool things there were, they were all too weird anyway, but as time went on, it was no longer an option to be passive, your food depended upon it. That is when and how I conquered it. There are so many other things that I have learned on this trip, but it would take a whole book to write it all down. Regardless of all my personal stuff, I want to thank you all for joining me in this journey, with all its ups and down, joys and pains, and for encouraging and inspiring me through it all. You guys are the best. And yes this trip is and was all in God's perfect plan for our trip, praise the Lord I'm comin' home.
Julia

P.S. I have thought about it and have decided that I want to keep this blog going. If I've managed to do 14 posts in the last 3 months, then hopefully, I can try again with my original plan for this blog and post my ideas and inspirations. I hope you will all want to join me in my biggest journey, the journey of life.
I hope to see you all again in the mass world of Cyber communication. Thanks!