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Thursday, February 11, 2010

Take Off & Reentry

So my last month in Buenos Aires has begun. Actually, I'm not thinking about it as the last month of my first trip. I am thinking of it as the first month of my 2nd trip. You'll find out what that means in a second. You must be wondering what I must be feeling. Sad? Happy? Mixed? When I woke up this morning, I felt two emotions that were actually trying to work against other and cancel out each other.

One emotion said "You've made it! You've done everything that you came here to do and now you can slack off a little." The other emotion and sense that I had was quite the opposite. It was the feeling that this month would actually be the most important month in Buenos Aires and everything that I have to be more alert than ever this month to make sure everything is set in place. Or I'm going to lose all that I've worked hard for in the past 5 months.

This is the reason I've titled this edition "Take off & Reentry". Because I liken this journey very much to the taking off and landing of a plane. The "taking off part" I did very well. I simply packed my bags, gave my notice and left! The "flight" I would say is relatively smooth with very few bumps, very much like my actual flight here to BA. But now it is time to prepare for reentry. Any pilot will tell you that reentry is probably the most important part of the journey. And there is a part of me that wants to be lazy and be like "Whatever, it'll be fine....i'll work out somehow." I can tell you right now that if I ever had a pilot with that attitude, I would never ride on a plane with that pilot again. Provided that I actually lived to book another flight after riding with such an idiot!

I don't know what ways that I need to stay alert but all I know is that I need to. I loved watching an interview with oscar winning actor Jamie Foxx who won an oscar for "Ray". During the interview, he was asked how he could keep up the momentum after his big win. It was brought up in the interview that alot of actors and actresses get an oscar and start to go downhill after that. Their movies and acting aren't as good.

He said something that I will never forget. He actually does not keep his award in his house. His manager actually has put it in a different office or location so that Jamie doesn't sit in his home and revel over this award while losing all his acting ability. He said in the interview that he appreciates the award but in reality, that reward represents that moment in time and it was for that time. But he's not going to park there and celebrate. Jamie Foxx knows he needs to keep working on his craft if he wants to remain in the spotlight in the coming years.

Those words echo within me in this moment. Before my trip, I got asked alot if I was excited. Truthfully, I was too busy to feel anything. I had to be on top of my game learning spanish while at the same time prepare to go from 1st world to 3rd world. All my spare time before my trip was spent learning a new language, learning about the city and do's and dont's of living in BA. Details! Details! Details!

Now is the opposite. I am preparing for reentry. Understand that yes, it will be nice to relax an holiday in a 1st world nation with many comforts that you don't have over here. But I'll be coming home with something I didn't have before my trip. And that is a whole family and community of people that I have a mission and a responsibility to teach english to. I know this is the reason I was brought to their church, to give people an opportunity that they normally wouldn't have due to restraints with time and money.

So hang with me as a shift gears and prepare for reentry. The other day I was watching "Apollo 13" in the student lounge here. A very timely movie for me at this moment although I am pretty sure that my reentry won't be carrying the dangers and possibilites of explosion or death due to a collision with the earth's atmosphere :0 You will see me touch down alive and well and better than ever with more to give and enrich your lives with than ever before. This isn't the last month of my first trip. It is the first month of my second trip and it is in this month that I am setting the stage for everything that happens when I return to BA.

Amorous Alpacas

Amorous Alpacas