i remember before coming to
israel,
wondering what this experience
would be like.
the city,
the byu center,
what the group would be like,
if i would make any friends,
if i needed to go to the
bathroom and no one spoke english to direct me to the WC…
all very valid wonderings.
before leaving for the summer,
i went to bid farewell to
chloe.
beautiful, hilarious, bestest
childhood friend
and well-experienced world
traveler, chloe.
i expressed my wonderings to
this dear chum,
and i’ll never forget what she
said.
“liza, you’re going to be in
such a unique experience with these people. you’ll eat together, study
together, play together. there’s nothing more bonding than when you’re hiking
around so hot and sweaty… you don’t have to feel insecure because everyone is
going through the same experiences together.
traveling makes you r a w – you’re
thrown in a completely foreign place, and it shows you what your insecurities
and strengths are and how that makes who you are and what you want to become.
don’t worry too much… by the very nature of the experience, you can’t be anything but yourself.”
a few weeks ago we went hiking
at a place called, ein gedi.
twas a beautiful hike,
but man, was it hot as hades.
we’d get drenched from head to
toe
in every pool and waterfall we passed.
and walking around wet and
gritty,
with stretched out clothes,
scraggly hair,
smudged makeup,
laughing, sweating, and splashing
around
with the best of friends…
those words came back to me
like a familiar whisper.
this is it.
totally, completely, and
utterly
R A W.
