Vulnerability is strength, diversity makes us stronger,
nature is healing, and anything can be appreciated.
I learn something from every single person I meet. So I was on the bus the other day and I overheard a group of Americans speaking English so I went and said hi and it turns out they were part of a church in Texas staying in Uruguay for a few weeks calling it an exchange. The problem is that it isn’t an exchange because they were not exchanging. They came to Uruguay to teach their religion to others, to affect the country rather than to learn or be affected. And in return they hadn’t learned any of the language, tried any of the food, adapted any ways of life, or even informed themselves on the culture to begin with. So this group of strangers I met on the bus taught me something about myself and about what I do, which is that you should never go somewhere new with the hope or expectation to teach something, it should always be the goal that we end up learning something. Learning is the goal and sharing what you’ve learned is an added benefit, because you can't teach if you haven’t learned.
As if my life couldn’t get any better, I went on a trip to Brazil with a surf and yoga group in April. It was an unforgettable experience for so many reasons. Usually when trips are coming to a close I feel tired and ready to be back home, but I feel like I left this trip literally rejuvenated and positive and glowing. First thing I learned was that surfing is difficult and if it requires physical strength and flexibility, it requires ten times that of mental strength and flexibility. That's because no matter how many times you get yourself up, you always fall back down. It’s not a sport or a game that you can win and that was something very new to me. So I really had to learn to be proud of myself for trying regardless of the outcome. We surfed so much that every night I would lay down and literally feel like I was still in the ocean and there were waves crashing against me. It was a beautiful and repetitive daily routine we had, and I made a lot of memories and connections with the group of strangers who I was with.
I took with me a lot of meaningful moments from Brazil but one of my favorites happened on one of the last days on an unfamiliar beach that we were trying out. I had been training in the smaller waves up until that point and this was the first day that I got to go way out to the part where the waves haven’t crashed yet. I didn’t even realize that was a thing and it was a pleasant surprise to see that once you finally get yourself and your board way out to the back through all the foam and waves working against you, it's actually incredibly peaceful back there. You don’t have to worry as much about the waves pulling you under and you can chill on your board and rest until you’re ready for the next wave. It was like a party back there. I remember that out of nowhere it started pouring rain and everyone left the beach and it got super foggy. Our surf group was the only one out there and we were all just chilling on our boards in the water soaked by the rain and having so much fun. It was such a beautiful moment and that's when I realized why so many people dedicate themselves to this sport.
One more thing I learned in Brazil is to appreciate being able to communicate. I bonded with one of the surf instructors named Rapha who only spoke Portuguese, and surprisingly we were able to communicate pretty well between Spanish and Portuguese. I will never forget him screaming “rema rema rema” (row row row) in Portuguese when I was trying to catch a wave. Another thing is that in the heat of the moment in an adrenaline rush situation sometimes I wasn’t even able to express myself quickly in Spanish, and luckily I was able to catch a break with my friend Becci who speaks English. But I think something that a lot of people don’t realize is that it's really exhausting to always have to be finding ways to express yourself in another language. So I learned to be grateful that I am able to communicate well in at least one language (especially English which is universal and kind of difficult to learn).
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