I'm Not Afraid of Change

The assurance that I had in my previous blog about everything and everyone being the same when I got back is now staggering to me. I did expect everything to be pretty much the same as I left it, but now I realize how naive I was in thinking that way. I want to be able to say how disappointing it is that people (and things) can change so quickly, but then I realize that it is just a part of our natural existence, change. I wanted to yell out, to scream, because I felt like everyone and everything was suddenly not on my same playing field. But, the ultimatum is that just as people grow and age, they change. It was difficult to come back home after being gone for nearly three months and realize this because all you really want is what you had before. Things at home won't wait for you though. To believe that everything can remain at hiatus while you're out on the adventure of a lifetime is naive. I'm quickly and surely becoming aware of this. 

And just as people around me are changing and adapting to the new lives their fashioning for themselves, I have also been changing over the past few months. I've been exposed to new cultures, new places, and new people who think, act, and believe differently than I do. It's opened me up to a wider acceptance of others. I've now seen countries richer and more stable than the United States and then those at the opposite extreme: barely standing. I learned that if Europe could choose our next president, it would be Obama in a heartbeat. I also became more aware of myself as an American and how other nations view me in that sense. I have quite possibly changed in these matters, and I think that I might have acquired some new wisdom and possibly come home slightly more European (haha). 

So, in this sense, I guess I can understand the changes that have been going on here at home. However, I'm not going to lie and say that they weren't shocking at first. My uncle contracted the West Nile Virus around the same time that I was visiting its origins. Trying to understand that a loved one might die is overwhelming. Seeing him grow stronger is the miracle behind change. On a friendship level, I've come home to discover that some friendships have been altered or have disappeared entirely. People's feelings have changed; their opinions of me have changed. So, what can I do? Just continue my mission to respect and appreciate everyone for their individual thoughts, desires, and characteristics. 

It's sad to consider that some of these relationships with people might not be mendable. However, if I can create some form of mutual respect with those people, I'll take it. 

As cliche as it might sound, everything does happen for a reason. It might seem difficult right now, but we're all meant to gain something from what we're going through.

***

I could talk more about my voyage abroad during the past few months, but I'll spare you and provide the link to my other blog so you can check it out for yourself:

http://web.mac.com/jennamartin13/Jennas_Page/Welcome.html