Do Your Eyes See the World or Just the Developed World?

Many emotions were evoked today as I landed in Belfast for the last time while I still call it home. I know that I will always have a soft spot in my heart for Ireland and will definitely be walking in Irish rain at another point in my life. But I cant seem to get past the fact that THIS time in my life, my time as an Irish citizen, is almost over.

In 8 days I am done with my exams for Queens. In 13 days Nadine gets here. In 16 days my family gets here. And in 19 days I say good-bye to the last of my Ireland friends to depart.

Time is a funny thing. It goes slow when you want it to go fast and flies by when all you want is a few extra seconds to revel in the moment. My time here has gone by fast in some regards and slow in others.

As I stated in my last post, it is weird being an ocean away from everyone I have ever known and loved. It was weird knowing that my friends were walking across the stage at graduation and will never walk the campus as students again. I am soon to be a senior in college now. Where has the time gone? It was hard knowing 3 of my best friends were going out to lunch and would see a belly which has grown so much in the 4 months I have been gone. Our conversations are no longer at sleepovers where we talk about boys and crushes, but at lunch dates where we talk about babies and weddings. When did I grow up? It is unreal to be talking to my brother and his fiance about their house. And how my other brother hosted Easter brunch at his. Wasn't it just a few moments ago when we all lived under the same roof and I was known as Finneseth's little sis?

And amongst all the change there still remains some things that stay the same. I will always call those who are now known as Coe alum my friends. I will always have my girlfriends from home to call upon when I need a ear to listen or shoulder to cry on. My siblings and I will never live under one roof again but the bonds that were made because we did will never be broken.

Just as things have changed while I was gone, I too have not remained stagnant. I have also grown and changed in many ways. I have learned the importance of experiencing another culture and have also realized that even though I have immersed myself in another culture it is not so far from the one I know. And to truly see how the majority of the world lives I must go to a developing country. I have learned that this is something I have always felt called to do. A portion of me has always been a traveler at heart, but the larger portion seeks to improve the lives of others. In my adventures abroad and in reading the book "Half the Sky" by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, I have officially decided to combine the two portions of my heart. This life path will make me happy, this is what I was meant to do.

I truly feel that I am called to use my fortune from being born in a developed country to help those in the developing world. What sets me apart from the woman sitting in Africa other than the place I was born? So then I ask why does this make me more important?

If you feel I am being conceited in saying that I am more important than a woman in a developing world, I would agree with you. However, this is not my opinion but that of a greatly skewed society. Americans as a whole are well educated and rarely stress over the true necessities in life. However, even though we are educated we are only educated in our own world, not the world. We see the world through the eyes of a developed country without realizing that 82% of the world live in developing countries. We, my friends and family, are blessed. And we are blessed merely because we were born in a developed country.

1. I am blessed that I can sleep in my own room at night. Most people in developing countries share a one room hut with their whole family. I have my own room.
   
2. I am blessed to have my own car. Most people walk miles each day for water, a necessity in life. I hop in my car to get ice cream, not a necessity.
3. I am blessed to have food and water at my disposal. Most people never consume as much food in a week as I have in my fridge.
4. I am blessed to be educated. Most women in third world countries have limited educational opportunities and university is extremely rare.
5. I am blessed to have the choice to marry whom I wish and when I want. Most women in developing countries are married by the age of 16 and many do not have a choice as to who they are married to.
6. I am blessed to have the opportunity to choose when I start my family. Most women in developing countries have had at least 3 pregnancies by my age. This is much more of a blessing then a mere choice as to when to start a family. In Sub-Saharan Africa 1 in 7 labors result in maternal fatality. I am blessed to be alive.
   

The list could go on and on but I feel these 6 give you a greater understanding as to why I feel it is my duty to help give the basic human rights to those who weren't born into them. I hope that by reading my blog, I might inspire you to start your own journey of giving back to those in need. I would greatly recommend the book "Half the Sky" to anyone who wants to be inspired more and to open their eyes to the world out there, not just the world they see. If you want a more immediate way to help, my friend Mitchell Lincoln is doing missionary work in Rwanda and his uncle is going to visit him with suitcases full of equipment for the school Mitchell is working with. If you want to send some things with Mitchell's uncle he is asking that you purchase the items off amazon from Mitchell's wishlist this week so they get to his house in time.

I hope I inspired a journey in you. For we, my loved ones, are blessed.

Far in Miles But Near in Heart

Today, many of my friends graduated from COE. They are closing one chapter in their lives and beginning a new one. It is an exciting time in their life, one they will never forget. And as those friends walked across the stage, many miles and an ocean away, I was thinking of them. I wished with all my heart that I could be there with them. Cheering them on as they walked the final few steps of their college career. Instead, I was sitting in Belfast thinking of all the things I will miss next year.

Next year I will miss the boys texting me at 11:30 to see if I want to grab a beer. I will miss ladies night at the Moose with the girls of 2010. I will miss the random nights of drinks and fun that we shared. I will miss many things about the class of 2010, but with all my heart I wish them a pleasant beginning to their new journey.


The best tribute I could think of is this column article written by Mary Schmich in 1997 for the Chicago Tribune, which was made into the "Sunscreen Song."

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh nevermind; you will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked….You’re not as fat as you imagine. Don’t worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday. Do one thing everyday that scares you Sing Don’t be reckless with other people’s hearts, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours. Floss Don’t waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind…the race is long, and in the end, it’s only with yourself. Remember the compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how. Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements. Stretch Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don’t. Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees, you’ll miss them when they’re gone. Maybe you’ll marry, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have children,maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll divorce at 40, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary…what ever you do, don’t congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself either – your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s. Enjoy your body, use it every way you can…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you’ll ever own.. Dance…even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room. Read the directions, even if you don’t follow them. Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly. Get to know your parents, you never know when they’ll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings; they are the best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. Understand that friends come and go,but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young. Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel. Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you’ll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. Respect your elders. Don’t expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out. Don’t mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85. Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth. But trust me on the sunscreen…