South of the Equator

In the summer of 2012, I was given the great opportunity to go abroad. It was during this time that I discovered my role as a global citizen and the value in the small attitudes of an individual. Through the program "Amigos de las Americas," I went to the beautiful lands of Paraguay. With hills so steep, forest areas so vast, and lands so rocky, it did not seem that one would find themselves there but that they would lose themselves. And maybe I did, maybe I lost a part of me. Maybe I lost a darker side of myself that I had not realized existed before so that the light I found in others could shine in me.

The people we meet, wherever we are, impact us in some way shape or form. It is the beauty in not being the person you were meant to be and finding out yourself in others that makes human contact so meaningful. Much like June Jordan expressed in her story, "Report from the Bahamas," the connection we make with others is not limited to our always guided by our cultural similarities or gender but by who we need in our lives to make us who we want to be. The wonder and uncertainty our lives provide are only a piece of the puzzle and just the start of the journey we call life. The people we meet that impact us become a piece of us in some light. They are an outward manifestation of why we are and, inevitably, who we are. Many people and organisms have shaped who I am. One of the most impressionable interactions occurred when I was just sixteen years old. In a country not my own, I meet a beautiful being that would impress the values of compassion like I had not been impressed before.

 South of the equator, in a country landlocked and mountainous, my adventure into the external world and internal inquiry began. Upon first arriving to Paraguay, I had no expectations. Well, that's not true. I had low expectations. The possibility of no running water or electricity were present. The chance of living in a one room house with a family of five was possible. The fact that I would be surrounded by more than five hundred strangers with only my partner to speak English was definite. I simply hoped for the best. Training did occur nine months prior, but I still had no idea what to truly expect. All I knew was who I was at the time. All I know now is that I am not the same person. I could trace my elaborate sentiment for the people of my community to many people and experiences. The one that is ever so vibrant is that of all my conversations with a small twelve year old my named Salu. He had dark hair that was always spiked, was covered in freckles as plentiful as sand is on the beach and had the lightest brown eyes I had ever seen. More than that, he had a soul that I know touched my heart.

 His generosity was overflowing and overwhelming. We would walk with other kids to and from school and he would always carry his little sister's backpack while already holding his. He would always be the first kid to run into the prickly thickets when a ball would fly astray. He brought food to my house for me on separate occasions although he would sometimes go without food himself. If you ever complimented him on anything, he would immediately offer it up to be yours. Whether it was the shirt on his back, shoes on his feet, or love in his heart, Salu never held anything back. I had never experienced such kindness from another human being. I had never been so dumbstruck by a child. I had never wanted to make the world a better place for someone so much. Though only knowing Salu for two months. I felt that his spirit was one that had lived for a lifetime. Like an old soul with wise eyes, he retained a good natured spirit as though he lived through enough to know that it will always be alright. Seemingly untainted by the world around him, he was never without a smile and never showed anything but absolute joy to be alive.

His appreciation for the world around him was inspiring and infectious. Not simply the environment he lived I but the people he lived with and around, the culture that encompassed his way of life and simple moments of joyful bliss that always seemed in abundance with an attitude like his. It seemed so easy for him to love and this made me wonder what kept me from doing the same. Until I knew such characteristics existed, I had not wanted them so badly. To be so open with his care and affection was something unseen and unheard of by me. I could not help but be jealous of a kid four years my junior for his innate ability to live a happy life and be a light in others. This small moment in time, this break from reality, gave me the passion and motivation to want to connect with others as I had not before. I wanted to find, connect and relate to others so that I might better find, connect and relate to myself. I realized that the only way to figure out what to do with my life was to figure out who it was that was going to be living it.

This newfound acceptance of how I would find my place in the world was different. I always had a general idea and basic passions but never did my idea of who I was fighting for have a poster child. In meeting Salu, I meet an actual being that motivated me to act. I loved and cared for people outside of him, but there was a genuineness to his demeanor that made him different. In that summer of 2012, I meet my future in the eyes of a twelve year old kid. Someone that came from a world so different from mine, literally speaking a different language and still found moments of solace when I could not put into Spanish what I really wanted to say.  Understanding that surpasses language and cultural barriers is exactly what I believe the world needs more of if we ever hope to peacefully inhabit this gigantic rock that we call home.