life is divine chaos.
Life is a great, big, beautiful adventure. I’m getting ready to embark on the “adventure” part of my study abroad in which I travel along the “Garden Route” of South Africa adventuring all the way. For anyone who knows me personally, this is obviously the part of the trip I am most excited about. I get to swim with Great White Sharks tomorrow morning, jump off the world’s highest bungee jump the next day, look for wild African fauna on a safari, visit an ostrich farm, RIDE AN ELEPHANT (which may be the highlight of my life), and so many more exciting things. Anyways, I will blog about all that next weekend when I return home, I hope!
I was showing my roommate my own personal bucket list the other night (yes, I have one… I know I am a dork), and she was reading off all the things I will get to check off on the list. One of the best things I got to check off last week was “round the Cape of Good Hope”. I have always been fascinated by the Cape of Good Hope. It is popularly considered the place where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet (although, technically, it is not), and also is the most south-west point on the African continent. I was really excited about the Cape. It is part of the National Parks system of South Africa, so the land has been protected, and wildlife roam free. We saw ostriches and zebra! I spent the entire day with my face glued to the window of the bus, and whenever we got to get off, we all ran around despite the pouring rain. We visited Boulder’s Beach, home of African penguins. It was great fun watching fifty college students run around with a bunch of penguins.
Saturday I did a lovely 10.5 mile run with a great new runner friend. The sun was rising over Africa, and we were both just giddy from the excitement that is our lives and the endorphins. I rushed home for a quick shower before heading off the Old Biscuit Mill for some breakfast/lunch/feasting. Old Biscuit Mill is a popular market for tourists and locals alike, and it is also FOOD HEAVEN. I consumed an entire plate of eggs benedict and an entire banana-nutella crepe like it was nothing at all. I then continued to eat on the multitudes of free samples. Later, I visited the V&A Waterfront where I continued to eat more and more. It is a good thing I am a runner, or else I probably would have gained twenty pounds!
Today was spent lazily meandering around the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens which was blindingly beautiful. I just never knew where to turn my eyes and point my camera. I feel like that is every moment, though. Everything is kind of surreal because great exciting things are happening everyday in large quantities. I feel like I am doing enough living to last a lifetime.
My brain is turning off, and I have a 4:30AM date with a bunch of sharks. I will leave you with a favorite quote:
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Nelson Mandela, self actualization, and stuff…
I have been thinking a lot about why I am here… in Cape Town, South Africa. Certainly, I am thrilled by the idea of travel. They say “the world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.” I could not agree more. Travel enlightens us to other cultures, different people… there is nothing more important than opening our minds to the world and it’s immense collection of people, languages, religions, foods, histories, and cultures. I cannot emphasize how important I think it is that people see the world.
But one of the best things about travel is not only that we get to experience all those great things, but it also allows us to see ourselves in a completely new and different light. I greatly value the idea of self actualization, and I am constantly striving to become more self-realized and aware. It is one of the most important steps in becoming an enlightened, independent, esteemed, enriched, and effective global citizen. There is quite simply nothing more important than knowing yourself, your values, and your passions.
Everything we have been learning about leadership has started with the basic principle of knowing yourself, because how can it be possible to lead others without first understanding yourself? “Many of us know more about our favorite sports team, vacation spot, or favorite pair of running shoes than we do about ourselves.” Still, the process of self actualization is not an easy one. We have to shove off layers of pride, ego, reputation, and sooooo many expectations. In yoga, we always end our practice with the Sanskrit valediction “namaste” which is interpreted as “bow down ego” or “I bow down myself”. I love namaste. How often do we shed ourselves of our ego and our pride and actually examine our true selves?
Once we discover and embrace ourselves, we can begin doing what we love. I come from a generation that values following our passions. I truly believe this is the best advice our parents and grandparents can give us. It has been scientifically proven that happy people have more friends and live longer. We have the power, the education, and the opportunity to do what we love. We can make a career out of things we are passionate about. I am passionate about human rights, global justice, and social equity, and I fully intend to wrap my life around the pursuit of advancing these ideals. As for where Africa fits into this life plan, well, I will only say that I do not think this will be my only visit to this wonderful continent.
I had the honor to visit Nelson Mandela’s prison cell on Robben Island. What a unique, wonderful, surreal experience! He is a man I have always admired and wish to emulate. He’s turning 94 next month, and I don’t think anyone would argue that he is incredibly self-realized. He has admitted that those twenty-four years spent on Robben Island were the most formative years of his life, because he got to know himself. “I came out mature. There is nothing so rare- or so valuable- as a mature man.”
As for me, I have not false ideas that I am a mature woman. In fact, I fully embrace the fact that I am twenty years old, and not mature. It is my place in this world to be young, open-minded, and constantly seeking wisdom from those that know more. It is my job to see what is wrong with the world and go about seeking ways to make it better. If there is anything I despise, it is the young person that thinks that have the world figured out. Why can’t we just embrace the fact that we don’t have it all figured out?
Anyways, that is all for the day. I am sorry these have all been so thought-intensive and introspective, but I didn’t really think people would want a play-by-play of every moment of my life. (However, if you do, just let me know, I could talk forever about all the adventure I am having!)
“Everything that happens to you is your teacher. The secret is to sit at the feet of your own life and be taught by it.” -Polly B. Berends
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The best days of your life are the days in which you live your life and don’t think about your life at all.
It’s called mindfulness, living in the present moment.
I am an over-analytical human being. I always need to know why. I spend so much time analyzing and thinking about my life and other people’s actions, that it has a tendency to spoil the present moment. We recently had to take a strengths survey to discover our personal strengths. My top strengths all had to do with being an “intellectual” which basically means that I think about stuff too much. It is funny, however, how often I see my “strength” play out as a weakness in my life. I cannot just accept things for how they are; I seek constant justification, reason, and meaning. I find myself always dwelling on my past or living in my future. So often, I just wish I could let things go and let things be.
I am not thinking too much in Cape Town. I am not over-analyzing everything. Mostly, this is because I do not have time to think too much. Our days are so full with excitement and fun and beauty, that I barely have time to take it all in. In the past three days we have climbed to the top of Table Mountain (Cape Town’s most stunning geographical wonder where the picture was taken), visited impoverished school children in a local township, heard native South Africans give testimonies about growing up during apartheid, ate in delicious restaurants, shopped in local markets and so, so much more. Every day I wake up full of excitement about the day and go to bed equally excited about the next.
You might say that it is impossible not to be happy in my present moment. I am living in one of the most beautiful places in the world, after all. However, I am always surprised by just how much joy has been playing out in my life here in South Africa. I thought I would be homesick, nervous, uncomfortable, lonely, or scared. But for the most part, I am not. I am happy, I am living, I just am. I am not thinking about living my life; I am actually living it.
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day one
After many unhappy hours in an airplane, I have finally arrived in my new home in Cape Town.
A note on airplanes. I hate them. I’m not afraid of heights or anything, I just hate them. People act all “oh, exciting, flying, wee!”, and all I have to say is NO. No, no, no. I spent approximately twenty hours in a Tylenol PM induced drug haze in which I wasn’t really asleep and wasn’t really awake either. It was miserable. Although there was one shining moment when a flight attendant woke me up and gave me ice cream. Although, looking back, that could have been a hallucination…
Today was our first real day in Cape Town, and they packed the day full of orientation things and a tour of the city. I had a shocking realization of how shy I actually can be when I was forced to mingle with 140 random strangers. When I signed up for the trip, I understood I was coming knowing nobody, but the reality of it hit me today. I am on the other side of the globe, and there is not one familiar face. Honestly, the alone-ness part doesn’t scare me. I would love to spend my days here completely alone, running and reading and exploring to my heart’s content. It is the fact that they expect me to befriend all these people that scares me. Confessions of a true introvert. Luckily, I am not completely socially disabled, and I made a couple new friends pretty quickly.
We visited the Slave Museum and the District Six Museum, both fascinating to nerd-me. Then we went to the top of Signal Hill for a photo-op of Table Mountain and the surrounding city. Cape Town is one of the most extraordinarily beautiful places I have ever seen. You don’t have to choose between mountains and ocean, city or countryside. It is all there. We journeyed down to the ocean side for exploring and rock-hopping and more photography. I attached one of my favorite shots of the day.
I keep catching my breath when I realize that I’m in Africa. It just seems so surreal. Everything here- the landscapes, the culture, the food, the people- are wonderful and fascinating and exciting, and I have only been here for one day. I can’t wait to see what the rest of my time here presents.
Tomorrow, I’ll be on a plane to Cape Town, South Africa. Today, it’s 6AM, and I have already been awake for an hour thanks to my good friend anxiety. I guess it is my fault, because I am leaving for five weeks, and I haven’t packed a damn thing. My brain likes to wake me up and remind me of these things.
I’ve had this tumblr for over a year, so if I blog at all (no promises on daily updates, journaling always comes first), I guess it will be on here. Although now that I think of it, I haven’t even bought an adaptor plug yet, so who the hell knows how I am going to be charging my computer. Such unpreparedness! This isn’t my first time out of the country, so I am kind of going with the “let’s just wing it” approach. Not my best idea. Heck, I haven’t even registered for the two classes I am taking that START ON MONDAY MORNING.
These past few months, my life has been filled with a terrible amount of anxiety (word of the day?) that I am not living my life. My dislike of the normal college lifestyle has already won me a couple months of therapy. Not to get into that too much, I feel like I need to study abroad not only to break up the mundaneness of everyday education, but also to fulfill my unquenchable desire to see the world. I am one of those people who needs adventure, newness, and tons of ridiculous “experience” to justify my existence. Recently, this desire has totally consumed me and has been manifesting itself in lots of strange ways such as jumping out of airplanes, spontaneously dyeing half my hair purple, and signing up for a totally random summer abroad trip to Cape Town.
People act like living your dreams is a difficult thing to do. But really, it’s not. Not to get all Nike on you, but just do it. Get a job, quit your job, get the degree, learn the skill, take whatever steps are necessary. Figure out what you need to do to make it happen, then do that. We only have a few numbered days on Earth, so we have to stop putting things off until the hypothetical “tomorrow”.
Anyways, I guess I’ll go do that thing I’ve been putting off for many “tomorrows” which is begin to think about maybe starting to pack. Maybe.
Photo reblogged from ANIMALS TALKING IN ALL CAPS with 7,842 notes
SEVEN YOUNG LADIES STAND BEFORE ME … BUT I ONLY HAVE SIX PHOTOS IN MY HANDS.
AND THESE PHOTOS … REPRESENT THE GIRLS … WHO ARE STILL IN THE RUNNING TOWARD BECOMING … AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL.
I’M KIDDING, OBVIOUSLY. NONE OF YOU ARE TALL ENOUGH FOR RUNWAY WORK, PLUS I DON’T HAVE HANDS. NOW GET OUT OF HERE AND GO PLAY IN THE YARD. I NEED TO TAKE A LITTLE NAP.
Source: animalstalkinginallcaps
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