Appreciation

I just got home from the airport. I am exhausted from a long day of travel, and because we just spent two weeks in a van, trying to cram as much information into our brains as possible. It is hard to believe this trip is over. In this post, I hope to convey the gratitude I feel towards everyone involved in this trip. The actual amount of this gratitude is very sizable indeed, I'm not sure I will succeed in communicating it, but let's give it a try.

The girls I traveled with are so wonderful. Each person brought a different perspective to the group, and the kindness each of them showed me (and each other) was so vital to the tone of the trip. I am so appreciative to each of these amazing women for the ways they push boundaries to reach goals, and the ways they extend helping hands. This experience would not have been the same without any of you, I am so thankful for you. Thank you for these weeks, your time, your words and your laughter. I can't wait to spend time with you ladies back at school in the fall, and I am so sad that some of you have finished your time at Hendrix- you will be missed so dearly.

Dr. Goldberg, we have all said thank you but I feel the need to repeat it- thank you, thank you, for so much. The time involved in planning the trip and in teaching us, the connections made, the kindness you have shown and the experiences you have shared have all been so amazing and over the top. This trip was so much more than I expected, and I know that your efforts are what made it extraordinary. This trip, at this time, was so informative and it challenged me on a regular basis. I learned so much.

I think that on some trips, the experiences you have revolve around the people you are traveling with. That was definitely a huge factor in this trip, but it was different because our experiences were so heavily impacted by people we met along the way.  Every guide provided us with a different perspective, and a different form of passion. To all of you that shared your knowledge, thank you so, so much. Your passion, in your careers and out of them, has been so influential not only to the trip itself, but to me as a person. As an undergrad, I have been so inspired by you and the lives you lead. You have provided examples not only of people doing amazing work in the world, but of people who are enjoying doing that work. You have shown me some of the paths available and that there are many more, and that with determination, finding and following your path is so possible. I don't know how to explain how much that means to me, you have given me so much. Thank you.

I took photographs throughout this adventure. They are on little rolls of film that I had to ask friendly TSA agents to hand check at airport security. I will keep them safe until August, and then I'll have the chance to go through the trip again in the process of developing and printing. I'll get to think about this experience in a different way. There were times on this trip when I resented the camera I schlepped around, because I was more interested in living the story than telling it. However, I think that in the fall I will be glad for its presence and the moments captured.

Thank you, friends, for reading and traveling with us. It's been so fun.