The semester ended exactly two weeks ago today and I can hardly believe it. I remember when I was going to be leaving in two weeks, and when I'd been on semester for two weeks, and already I am home. The transition has been relatively smooth for me thanks to my family and friends who have given me the time to go out and be quiet in nature when I need to. Of course there are still places that are hard to be in. Like grocery stores and malls where most things come from the other side of the country, or the globe. But that has always frustrated me and Kroka merely gave me the space to see it in clearer perspective.
So here I am, at home, missing my friends from semester, but enjoying the time with my family and friends who I haven't seen in a while. It is a time of coming down from the mountainside, out of the wilderness, to sit back and reflect upon the journey I just took. It is a strange time, but a time rife with opportunity to change my life at home for the better. A time to take what I've learned and apply it.
I am looking forward to helping my dad build bee hives at our house and work in our garden, but I've also come home with a restlessness that I can't imagine will leave me anytime soon. I got a taste of travelling, of seeing new lifestyles, meeting new people, tasting new food, and I want to learn more. There is so much more to understand about this world we live in, so much more to see, to hear, to feel. I love school, but there's only so much I can learn from books and discussions. And teachers come in many forms.
So basically, I'm ready to leave for the next adventure. I'm interested in biking across the country and I think I might just buy myself a good camera instead of a computer (I donated mine to Kroka at the beginning of semester) and travel on my own for a while this spring. But not before I share my stories and pass on the gift I've been given. I am looking forward to giving presentations about my experience and figuring out a way to create a sustainable fund with the money I have left from fundraising. I am hoping to help young people from my school who want to go on an adventure of some sort and learn in new ways to fundraise for their dreams. Fundraising was such a vital part of my experience with Kroka and I am infinitely grateful to all those who made it possible. It is such a gift to be humbled and inspired by the generosity and love of so many people. Being able to pass on this gift would be an honor.
If you have any suggestions about the fund, send me an email, or write a comment. I have never created anything of this sort before. Also, if you haven't been reading the semester blog and you would like to read about our adventures, the address is http://krokaecuadorsemester2013.blogspot.com/ and I actually ended up having the job of scribe on semester, so I wrote the blog.
Love, peace and fresh air,
Sonya
p.s I will post the dates and locations of my presentations once I establish them with the various people I have agreed to do presentations for. I will also get some pictures up as soon as I can, but in the mean time, I do have some pictures on my Facebook page.
