Some seeds flourished. Some seeds planted.

I relentlessly worked on finishing my application hoping my dreams to go abroad would come true. After a month or two of waiting for a response, I finally received the email. I was in. I was overjoyed in the moment, but I was unaware of all that this experience entailed. My first day with other leaders had already informed me of so much because of the diversity in perspectives and background. I had been around intelligent young people before, but I had never been in a room full of intelligent young minds that were so similar and different from myself. Immediately, I started bonding with these once strangers- some bonds were even stronger than those with the friends I had at home. The strength of these bonds made challenges easier. With this family we created, my group and I had experienced and learned an abundance of things through each other and immersion. One of the many aspects of this program that I loved was being able to learn from the South African people. Through a series of workshops, visits with NGOs, visits to schools, and two homestays I had immersed myself in South African culture, and I was able to evaluate the true ethos of South Africa. Not to mention the leadership workshops that took place in D.C., were used throughout my stay in South Africa, and were strengthened in Vermont. These workshops prepared me for not only South Africa, but for returning to my home community. Because of this experience, I will only continue to advocate- even more than before. Additionally, each day I still utilize what I learned on my journey to approach a wide range of problems including personal, interpersonal, emotional, and even physical. My family noticed a change in me right away as joy was now more of a priority than perfectionism. Who knew a flower could grow so much in 6-weeks?