One of my fellow exchangers posted the link to this article the other day on her Facebook wall, and I couldn't help but share it on my blog. This article pretty much sums up everything I feel about my exchange, why I am here, and the affect it is having on my life; and it says it all so perfectly. I really couldn't have written or expressed these ideas any better myself. So, without further ado... here is the link to the article "What Happens When You Live Abroad" by Chelsea Fagan.
http://thoughtcatalog.com/chelsea-fagan/2012/05/what-happens-when-you-live-abroad/#1LfRf2leJL8sXSyC.01
"So you look at your life, and the two countries that hold it, and realize that you are now two distinct people. As much as your countries represent and fulfill different parts of you and what you enjoy about life, as much as you have formed unbreakable bonds with people you love in both places, as much as you feel truly at home in either one, so you are divided in two."
This quote and the concluding paragraph of the article are the messages that really struck me and now have me reflecting on my experiences here in Ecuador and my future back in the US or wherever I end up after having experienced life abroad. It is exciting and scary because I know I am not done with life abroad, not done discovering new places, cultures, people, not done exploring where I want to settle down in the future. But at the same time, I know how much I hate leaving my family and friends behind, and the person I get to be in the various environments.
I am different here in Ecuador, and I will bring that changed self back to the States, but other than the language, friendships, and memories...I can't fully share who I am in Ecuador with my family and friend back home. I can't live like I am living now because Ecuador isn't the Unites States. I think the best I can do is keep blogging, keep posting, keep sharing my experiences in hopes that people understand a little bit better the life I have abroad without actually being here to see me in that life and experience it themselves.
That being said, thank you to those of you reading my blog and supporting me while I am on exchange. It is nice to know that there are people back in my other home that think of me often and are excited to here about this side of me, a side foreign to all of you.
I hope you enjoyed the article!
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