Ideal killer
Ideals are a weird mix of inexperience and experience. It seems to destroy ideals while begetting new ones. While in Abilene, I thought that traveling the world would be so exciting and would be such a rich life worth living. Living in China is those things. It is exciting, fresh, new, difficult, and constantly an adventure. Two days ago we went to the pet market after class to look at rabbits for Noël. Before leaving we took an inventory of necessary supplies: water bottle, camera, medicine, band aids, umbrella, bus book, and pens. It is a list of things you would need on a short day hike. It was. It took 3 hours to take two buses, two trains, two taxis, walk about 3 miles, talk to a pet shop owner who spoke about 50 words of English, navigate the masses, and return to our little apartment. Every trip is an adventure.
The ideals that I used to and currently have about travel have revealed themselves to be true, however through experience I realize that when you travel far from home to distant lands, you leave everything comfortable and all relationships. It just sucks to have to be in China during Christmas without your family, to have to wish your family members happy birthday over Skype, to have to ask how Homecoming was instead of eating Aramark eggs in the Beansprout too early in the morning, or to see your nephews and nieces grow up on blogs instead of person. As we live in China, we have begun to form new ideals about proximity or mobility. It would be nice to live close to family and friends, but if we don't, it would be great to be able to be mobile enough to travel to them.
Ideals are so important to me, because they help me process life through a very personal filter. Imagine a salmon; every fish that swims against the stream must have something inside of it that drives it- that motivates it. Mine is idealism. I hate minivans and hope to never own one. I would rather cook 20 meals a week at home than eat out every evening. I will never join a gym and in its stead, I would attach a bar to a wall or something and do pull ups on my jimmied rig. I will buy clothes only as often as necessity and Noël requires. If I am ever addicted to my glorious morning lattes, I will detox myself until I can feel the freshness of a non-caffeinated morning. I want to love Noël, my family and friends, protect the defenseless, and inspire people with thoughts. Furnished with my ideals I can filter in and out what I think is most important.
Will I be idealistic for the rest of my life? I sure hope so. Will my ideals change? Likely.
Many of the pictures were taken in the countryside, where up to 70% of the population lives. It is hard life with very little money. However, President Hu Jintao and the government are doing many things to improve the quality of life of these people and all of those in China. I have seen many of these things in the city, but have been too chicken to pull out my camera and take a picture. Here is the link to see more pictures.
The ideals that I used to and currently have about travel have revealed themselves to be true, however through experience I realize that when you travel far from home to distant lands, you leave everything comfortable and all relationships. It just sucks to have to be in China during Christmas without your family, to have to wish your family members happy birthday over Skype, to have to ask how Homecoming was instead of eating Aramark eggs in the Beansprout too early in the morning, or to see your nephews and nieces grow up on blogs instead of person. As we live in China, we have begun to form new ideals about proximity or mobility. It would be nice to live close to family and friends, but if we don't, it would be great to be able to be mobile enough to travel to them.
Ideals are so important to me, because they help me process life through a very personal filter. Imagine a salmon; every fish that swims against the stream must have something inside of it that drives it- that motivates it. Mine is idealism. I hate minivans and hope to never own one. I would rather cook 20 meals a week at home than eat out every evening. I will never join a gym and in its stead, I would attach a bar to a wall or something and do pull ups on my jimmied rig. I will buy clothes only as often as necessity and Noël requires. If I am ever addicted to my glorious morning lattes, I will detox myself until I can feel the freshness of a non-caffeinated morning. I want to love Noël, my family and friends, protect the defenseless, and inspire people with thoughts. Furnished with my ideals I can filter in and out what I think is most important.
Will I be idealistic for the rest of my life? I sure hope so. Will my ideals change? Likely.
Many of the pictures were taken in the countryside, where up to 70% of the population lives. It is hard life with very little money. However, President Hu Jintao and the government are doing many things to improve the quality of life of these people and all of those in China. I have seen many of these things in the city, but have been too chicken to pull out my camera and take a picture. Here is the link to see more pictures.
WOW! That is alot of bikes!!!
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