Studying
abroad in Europe has been an amazing experience. I have learned things about
myself and grown in ways that I don't believe I would have if I had not taken
this opportunity to study abroad. During this time I was challenged
academically, socially, culturally, mentally, and even emotionally. I use the
word challenge, however, with a very positive connotation. I strongly believe
that it is through challenges that we as people grow and learn the most. This
experience has not just changed the way I make choices, but has given me a
greater perspective of the world we live in, and has ultimately allowed me to
grow and change as a person.
I have
noticed the biggest change in myself is that I am now more independent. I have
always considered myself somewhat independent, however I now have confidence in
my independence. I am not only confident in my ability to travel, but I am
confident in my ability to make what needs to happen, happen even if I am in a
foreign land with a language barrier. While I was in Spain I managed to travel
to multiple different cities, fly to two separate countries, perform well academically,
and line up a job on the West Coast of the United States. I realize now that
through this month I have demonstrated an ability to complete tasks not just
where I am at, but internationally. The feeling of doing so is irreplaceable. And
it is through this trip and experiences that I was able to grow in my confidence
and independence. As a result of this growth I
was able to take advantage of multiple opportunities that were placed in
front of me.
Because
of this change I plan to make the choice to continue to take advantage of opportunities
placed before me. I want to travel my own country more. I want to experience
aspects of the U.S. that I never knew existed. I now find so much value in
traveling, and I want to intentionally travel, explore, and learn more about my
country.
Due to
this travel abroad experience I am also making the choice to be more involved
and more active in understanding world news. I could not believe how much
people in Europe knew about my home country. They had so much knowledge on
different aspects of my home country, to the point that it made me feel so
naive and ignorant as I sat there not even able to ask them about a single
person in their government. I realized how little I know about the world and I
want to change that. When you care about someone you take the time to learn
about them. I want to be someone who cares about the world and cares about
other countries. So I am making the choice to be intentional and learn more
about other countries, their cultures, their current events, and aspects of
their governments.
I feel
that the greatest impact this trip has had on me however, is in my faith. I
honestly struggled with my faith and my beliefs while in Europe. Going through
culture shock and being in a place that was so new with people I did not know
made me begin to question my faith. Something for the last two years I have
been so sure of, I began to doubt. I struggle to find the words to accurately
convey what I felt, but emptiness and uncertainty might accurately sum it up. However, I learned ultimately that faith is
believing, pursuing, and trusting in something despite what emotions you might
be feeling. Through choosing to continue to cling to my beliefs even as I
emotionally struggled, I feel that my faith was solidified. I am now not just
more confident in myself but I am more confident in my faith and my beliefs. To
me that is something that is invaluable.
If any
student were to ask me if they should study abroad I would say 'Absolutely,
yes.' The experience of studying abroad is more than just fun. It is enlightening.
I feel more connected to myself as well as the rest of the world. To me going
abroad is something every student should take advantage of. And I am so
incredibly thankful that I did.
