Venice Where the dazzling men adorned in black and white pin stripes row their polished Gondola’s downstream. Where the crystal blue canals glisten beneath the thousands of bridges intertwined throughout the city grid. Where the young honeymooners flock to consume extensive amounts of overpriced wine in hopes to fall deeper in love. At least, that’s how social media portrays it. (MYSELF INCLUDED) In my most recent trip to Venice, Italy this past July, I was most certainly surprised by this thriving city built on water. The moment my mom – the wisest travel partner any gal could ask for - and I stepped foot off of the train platform, we knew we were in for a treat. Thousands of foreigners immediately surrounded us, leaving little room to breathe. Not to mention, the smell of the “glistening canal water” reeked of sewage. I stood in my shoes utterly SHOCKED by the chaos of massive boats and barges running through the same Grande Canal that my relaxing Gondola ride was supposed to row me along later that evening - Now THAT was not a sight I had ever seen in the post cards. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not here to belittle the insanely magical city that is Venice, but rather point out that expectations built up through the media are not always the entirety to reality. And boy oh boy how that can be a blessing in disguise! In our generation there are a great deal of figures who seem to depict the illusion of a perfect scenario – such as those newlyweds posing for a smooch in front of the sparkly blue Venetian waters! I often find that we idolize these people seen on social media, whether it be a celebrity, a peer, or a neighbor, into being invincible, perfect humans (I am most certainly guilty). It is thought that they have their lives together and are fully satisfied, so if we do everything that they do (post cool pictures, dress a certain way, act a specific way, etc.) we’ll also have an all-satisfying life. But we’re basing everything we know about them on pictures and outer appearance. And yet, we get this feeling of inadequacy and dissatisfaction when we look at other people’s lives because we think that they “have it all together” and are “perfect” or are the cringe-worthy concept of “goals.” Here’s my theory: everyone has a different perception of what perfection should look like. The person you’re trying so hard to model your life after doesn’t even think that their life is perfect. They’re doing the EXACT same thing that you are, just with a different person’s life. When we start to think that “perfection” is something that can be attained outside the person of Jesus, that’s when it becomes easy to forget who we are meant to be: diverse people created by the One who makes no mistakes -- only masterpieces. As I think back to those crowded, smelly streets, I can’t help but smile! Even though we encountered a handful of unexpected situations, Venice surpassed our expectations due to the subtle charm that is not portrayed through the media. What you cannot see in photographs: the soft clinking of dishes being hand-washed by REAL PEOPLE inside of the houses tucked away from tourism, the delicate pieces of clothing that hang on clothes lines amidst the hustle and bustle, and the booming of the bell tower every hour on the dot. When first experiencing a situation – whether it be a college I’m visiting or person I’m meeting – I typically have a preconceived notion of what it/he/she may be like due to some form of social media. But I’ve come to realize that there is always a story behind every photograph, and authentic memories will almost always trump fabricated expectations. SEE WHAT I MEAN!!! These pictures sure don't scream smelly pigeon and sweaty European.. (except maybe the middle one)
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I could write a novel on the friendships I share with each of these ladies, but I think this video is an even better representation of how much fun we have together! Never in my life have I met people so effortlessly genuine with their thoughts, words, and actions... LET ALONE be blessed enough to grow along side them! To know them is to love them. Anna, Amelia, Taylor, Jena, and Ellie - THANKFUL IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT!
It wasn’t normal waking up every morning in the middle of a Pacific jungle. It wasn’t normal to prepare dinner while admiring a pale orange sunset over the ocean every night from the steps of our shack for that week. It wasn’t normal living with 13 other young adults who I had only met in the Honolulu airport just hours before packing up for camp. It most certainly was not normal to be spending my summer serving - deforesting, gardening, doing manual labor, local outreach – it was an adventure that I, a sophomore in high school, would have never imagined for myself.
Throughout my three weeks of service on the magical island of Oahu, my squad quickly realized that we never wanted to become immune to each of those little things. I never wanted the journey to feel “normal.” Rather, we made it a goal to want to wake up every single morning in absolute awe of the privilege we had been blessed with. I wanted to feel like a blind man who was seeing everything for the first time; completely awestruck. If I could choose a phrase to define my time over those three weeks I would choose this: BE WHERE YOUR FEET ARE! The people and places I encountered taught me to be present: I remember the dirt that I thought would never escape from under my fingernails after a day’s work of harvesting taro. I remember sinking in the hot sand laughing uncontrollably until our abs could no longer take it! I remember the genuine happiness that flushed over me when realizing that I was truly making a difference in the lives of those around me. As I approach a new chapter in my life, I try to hop back into the shoes of the newly confident, grounded, and appreciative young teen who emerged from this trip. Since then, I’ve made it a priority to value the little things in life. Between overloaded schedules and THE golden question of, “so what are you going to do with your life?” it becomes easy to get swallowed up in the stresses of the future and/or the unknown. Later down the road when reminiscing on old times, whether from my service trip sophomore year or my roller-coaster-ride of a senior year, I hope to remember the names, and faces, and places, and moments, and sunrises, and sunsets, and clouds, and lives I touch as well as those who touch mine… These are the things that I do not want to let slip through my fingers! In order to “be where my feet are,” I need to concentrate on feeling the literal ground beneath my feet. After all, you can’t tell a story that you never took the time to know! As I keep on chuggin’ through this sweet adventure that is life, I find it more and more important to count my blessings and appreciate even the most minor normalcies. |