I woke up this morning and thought, "Why can't I be in Austria right now?"
I love being home. But there's really nothing like waking up next to the Schloss.
I pretty much passed out when I got home last night. And this morning I woke my mom up and couldn't stop talking about the trip! She practically forced me out of her room: "Tengo sueño!"
Going to Salzburg Global Seminar in Salzburg, Austria has been one of the greatest experiences of my life. And it will still take me some time to process the entire trip.
The seminar was a cultural and academic phenomenon! That sounds very...cheesy. But it's true. I mean, you sit in a room with professors from around the world talking about global issues, and then you look at the view outside and you see the Alps! It was unbelievable.
Being there for only a week, though, I think we got a chance to experience the city, too. Every person I met on this trip has been a lot of fun and easy to talk to. Like Clara said, I was able to relate to and build relationships with our group. And thanks to all of you guys for putting up with my awkwardness for most of the trip. If I'm not going on about religion or morals, I'm usually not saying a word.
I told Reinhold before leaving that I would be back in Salzburg soon, and I intend on making sure I go back...and marry an Austrian boy!
This trip has really been a "blessing," if such a thing exists. I am very fortunate for having experienced everything in the last week and I hope to stay in touch with everyone to share pictures, thoughts, and so that Michelle gives me my Austrian friends' emails. :)
Your friend and the self-proclaimed Global Citizen,
Julissa
Friday, May 30, 2008
Home Sweet Home
I don't, I can't, I won't be able to explain in words and make someone understand how I feel right now. Fulfilled, whole, elated, sad, yet humble. I have awoke every morning for the past week to the crisp, mountain air and fallen asleep to the light of the moon and stars. Here, in Texas I seldom ever see stars and the air is pungent with exhaust fumes and stuffy.
I am a Citizen of the World! Not Black, Not a Woman, No longer just an American! This world has been revolving around me and I had no clue, but now that I know what and who I truly am now, I must become the change that I have made.
Mary Catherine Bateson said, "A home is a place where it is possible to learn and grow, a place where whatever work is done has a meaning." I have a new home in Salzburg, with new life long friends and family. I have learned and grown by leaps and bounds in the last week, I didn't come back the same person and if I go back to being that person, I have cheated myself of the experience. I can no longer look at the world as black or white anymore because, its not.
I was forced out of my box, I was forced to think and grow. I was confronted with the pure reality of life, it came from the sky like a flaming ball of fire. Now as a parent, I must force these new perspectives into the mind of my child. Just think of the advantage that my son will be at learning the things that I know.
Today, I walked to the grocery store and the mall. The changes are small, but they are changes.
New Perspective
Well, I’ve returned home, unpacked and am uploading a ridiculous amount of pictures and videos onto my computer.
The seminar was eye-opening. While I was there, I knew it was special, but I didn’t realize to what extent it impacted me until today and last night after coming home and hearing people talk about world issues. I now have an awareness to look up what they are saying and not just automatically believe what they say. Also I know how to research issues much better thanks to our research project.
One thing I especially enjoyed was hearing Annette Kobak (author of Joe’s War: My Father Decoded) speak about her relationship with her father and hearing his views of WWII and writing a book about it. My father was in the Vietnam War and only recently has he started talking about his experiences. Hearing Annette inspired me to write down everything he says about the war (more so than I had already been). It is important for us to hear from those who witnessed things first-hand...and to remember what they say.
I want to thank those who made this opportunity possible! It was a fantastic journey through Europe as well as intellectual discovery.
Cannot Believe it has come and gone
It is hard to believe that the trip I have been looking forward to and working towards is really a part of my history already. More than that, it is a part of my future, I am forever changed! I had an idea of the purpose of this incredible opportunity to travel, and as usual, there was so much more to it than I could have ever dreamed or imagined. I feel like a part of me that has been sleeping for God only knows long, was reawakened from the moment I spotted the first lilac tree. I was awakened to much in the arena of global citizenship and being a member of the other common association we share, the human species, regardless of the distinctions we impose or have imposed upon us. However, the personal revolution that was begun on this trip will have a greater impact on my life, and that is with the limited, initial understanding I have at this moment.
As a non-traditional student, I was apprehensive about connecting with the majority of students there and in general that are usually half my age. Much to my delight, I was counted as an academic equal, despite my elementary level computer skills. I so enjoyed the small group I was assigned to, that it is hard to imagine that that particular part of the seminar is the part I was, let's just say, least excited about.
Thank you Carol and Dr. Wood for challenging us and being willing to take such a group so far without compensation. I hope we weren't too whiney. And thank each and every one of my travel companions for the insight and caring you imparted to me as we walked, ate and talked. You have made an imprint on my heart. God bless you all!
As a non-traditional student, I was apprehensive about connecting with the majority of students there and in general that are usually half my age. Much to my delight, I was counted as an academic equal, despite my elementary level computer skills. I so enjoyed the small group I was assigned to, that it is hard to imagine that that particular part of the seminar is the part I was, let's just say, least excited about.
Thank you Carol and Dr. Wood for challenging us and being willing to take such a group so far without compensation. I hope we weren't too whiney. And thank each and every one of my travel companions for the insight and caring you imparted to me as we walked, ate and talked. You have made an imprint on my heart. God bless you all!
in media res
I'm back--in the suburban jungle of cookie-cutter brick houses, greasy fast-food conglomerates and multi-lane freeways. Do I want to be here? No, not really. I realized before I left that this was going to be a special week in a magical place...and it was. It felt almost like a dream for me. I had a small taste of everything I want to be connected to in the midst of an old and beautiful environment. I also knew that this seminar was only going to be a week long and I would be returning to my "real life" shortly.
So yes, I am back home in a place where I don't necessarily feel at home, but what keeps me inspired is that I feel like I took a little bit of that dream back with me. I acquired many things from different people and events during this trip.
My options were expanded--both mentally and geographically. I gained an appreciation of what it means to be a global citizen, embracing the diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and lifestyles even within my own group of 11. I received realistic advice for my future from those who were a little further down the road. I developed relationships quickly with a wonderful group of people. I had the opportunity to be surrounded by a group that was there not out of obligation but because they cared and really wished to be. I spoke with staff and faculty with whom I would not normally have had a chance to meet, let alone exchange personal life stories with. I made eye contact. I let my imagination be carried away.
We spoke of tipping points during the seminar--an experience or moment that defines your future. I think this trip may have been a small tipping point for me. I know I always get the quiet label (I am!), but there was a lot of internal dialogue going on and I have a lot of things to think about within the next few months.
I would highly recommend this opportunity to anyone considering it. Get out of your comfort zone! Stretch your perspectives and knowledge! Try something new!
I guarantee you won't regret it.
Clara
So yes, I am back home in a place where I don't necessarily feel at home, but what keeps me inspired is that I feel like I took a little bit of that dream back with me. I acquired many things from different people and events during this trip.
My options were expanded--both mentally and geographically. I gained an appreciation of what it means to be a global citizen, embracing the diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and lifestyles even within my own group of 11. I received realistic advice for my future from those who were a little further down the road. I developed relationships quickly with a wonderful group of people. I had the opportunity to be surrounded by a group that was there not out of obligation but because they cared and really wished to be. I spoke with staff and faculty with whom I would not normally have had a chance to meet, let alone exchange personal life stories with. I made eye contact. I let my imagination be carried away.
We spoke of tipping points during the seminar--an experience or moment that defines your future. I think this trip may have been a small tipping point for me. I know I always get the quiet label (I am!), but there was a lot of internal dialogue going on and I have a lot of things to think about within the next few months.
I would highly recommend this opportunity to anyone considering it. Get out of your comfort zone! Stretch your perspectives and knowledge! Try something new!
I guarantee you won't regret it.
Clara
So long, farewell, aufwiedersehn, goodnight
Back in Texas, it's is fun to travel but there is nothing like sleeping in your own bed. This past week was such an adventure, filled with new ideas, places, and people. I am so grateful for this opportunity that was given to us that made all these new experiences possible. The entire time I was in the country I never forgot that TCC made this trip available for us. Sometimes while eating in the dining room I would sit back in my chair, and think to myself, this is wonderful, as I looked at the mountains staring back at me through the window. This trip was not a vacation, no mistaking that. Our small group projects had only about 8 hours of planned time in our busy schedules. In spite of the short amount of time all of the groups were able to hammer out ideas into solutions for our given topics. The presentations went great and everyone seemed well spoken and prepared on their topics. What was impressive during the presentations was the fact that some of the students were very nervous about speaking in front of the group. In fact, I think we were all apprehensive with good reason; the faculty there is incredibly bright. The class work we did before the trip prepared me in a way that I didn't understand beforehand. Class work is intense when you have a full college schedule, but I learned that I can handle that kind of load if I was willing to make the sacrifice. The sacrifice of time was worth it, many hours of reading in the library, opting to leave work early to complete assignments on time, and spending less time on the extras of life was well worth it. Thank you Dr. Wood and Carol Hunsberger for doing all the leg work to set up this trip, I cannot say it enough, I know that sacrifices were made on your part too by taking on our extra classes. The lectures, to but it simply, amazing! I learned a whole new way to look at the world in which we live. We need to contribute, even if what we do is insignificant, do it anyways. Our news for the most part is lacking in the world perspective, and people living in other places in the world know more about what is happening in the US than a lot of the people that live here. Which brings up the question, why do they care so much about what we do? For the reason, what we do has an effect worldwide. The rest of the world cares more about America, than America cares about the rest of the world. When I applied for the Salzburg Seminar, my thought was this is once in a lifetime. I hope that it isn't. Before leaving I would hear the question, what is it for? And I would say it is an international relations seminar, it is so much more. This seminar is for the sole purpose of laying the foundation of becoming a global citizen. What is a global citizen? They are participants of the world, who think of not only how decisions made effect their country , but others as well.
Looking Back
I finally made it to bed around 12:30 am this morning and it felt wonderful to be back home. Yes, I also got some rest and slept in till 9 am this morning.
In taking a look back over the past 10 days and trying to write about it is just phenomenal to me. This trip has opened my mind up to new ideas and has planted a questioning and curiosity seed with in me to want to search for answers even if they are not always positive. The lectures and discussions we heard we enlighting to me even if they did not share my own point of view but I respected that fact that it is good for us to hear others for your own sake of growing as a person.
I have enjoyed learning from the seminar but especially from my fellow classmates. As we each brought our own views of life with us, we all respected each other and embraced our differences. I think this allowed us to become in a sense like a family and form relationships based on this incredible experience.
Our instructors prepared us well for what was expected. I was not overcome with anxiety for the work that was required of us there in Salzburg. I would recommend this experience and opportunity to anyone who is wanting to find their own voice and calling in life as well as truly wanting to learing about other people for being people and not just a specific ethnic background.
In taking a look back over the past 10 days and trying to write about it is just phenomenal to me. This trip has opened my mind up to new ideas and has planted a questioning and curiosity seed with in me to want to search for answers even if they are not always positive. The lectures and discussions we heard we enlighting to me even if they did not share my own point of view but I respected that fact that it is good for us to hear others for your own sake of growing as a person.
I have enjoyed learning from the seminar but especially from my fellow classmates. As we each brought our own views of life with us, we all respected each other and embraced our differences. I think this allowed us to become in a sense like a family and form relationships based on this incredible experience.
Our instructors prepared us well for what was expected. I was not overcome with anxiety for the work that was required of us there in Salzburg. I would recommend this experience and opportunity to anyone who is wanting to find their own voice and calling in life as well as truly wanting to learing about other people for being people and not just a specific ethnic background.
Texas my Texas
How can 8 days so profoundly change a person??
I don't know. Let's take it from the top:
In the days before leaving to Salzburg, everyone kept telling me to "have fun." In the back of my mind, though, I was skeptical. Fun? It's going to be a rigorous course of study. "Get smart," maybe, but "Have fun?" I knew there wouldn't be much time for leisure, and I was okay with that. I just had to brace myself for the loads of information that promised to enlighten me. Beyond that, I didn't know what to expect. I mean, could this trip really impact me in the way it was said to do so? What was the meaning of a global citizen? Was it really that important? Would I get along with everyone? Would I like the food?
Despite all these questions, I was ready to expect the unexpected. The only thing I wasn't ready for...was how to leave this new place that I had fallen in love with. Not just the place, but what it stood for. What it meant to be a global citizen. I had no idea just how complete the 7 day course study would be. Have fun? I had a blast. Get smart? I've been transformed. This ISP was no joke. It was a life changing experience.
The Salzburg Seminar embodied the concept of global citizenship down to the very lifestyle we led while we were there. If you think about it, it brought together a variety of students, staff and faculty from all over the world--different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, you name it--and forced us to work together, live together and learn together. We were able to interact with the locals and get to know the different lifestyle and customs of a foreign country. (Even if we didn't like the fact that everything closed at 7, we respected it and tried to rush into town before then.) So while we were learning about collaborating, understanding and communicating on a global level we were able to actively apply the lessons we were learning. And from the sound of it, our ISP group did a particularly good job of overcoming the obstacles that take form when you bring a group of strangers together to pursue a common goal.
If I had to explain my 8 days at the Seminar to someone I would tell them this:
Sometimes in life you come across people who you might deem as "sheltered." The type of person who for one reason or another hasn't been exposed to much of what we call the "real world." And when this person finally steps out of their sheltered cocoon, they're stripped of their naivety and have a "coming out" in which they finally understand how the world really works. But, how much do you really know about the "real world?" Not just the United States and oil prices or the Iraq War, but the global interconnectivity and responsibilities of tending to and embracing these connections. The "real world" not as defined by one specific culture, but on the global scale that involves the real world. If you are like I was, then you might not understand as much as you thought you did. The Salzburg Seminar took me, a sheltered person, and led me to my coming out into the real world.
The day before leaving Salzburg, I was pretty sad. I thought I would cry. It's such a beautiful place and such a beautiful process happens there. I didn't want to leave the people, the city, the castle. I didn't want to go back to a life where I wasn't fed every 3 hours, where bikes weren't as popular or where I couldn't look out my window to see the most magnificent landscape each morning. But most of all, I didn't want to go back to a life where I wouldn't essentially be living with all these brilliant people, the faculty, staff and the students. I miss the community the most.
But by the end of our wrap up session on Wednesday evening, it occurred to me that the Salzburg Seminar was only the tip of the iceberg. Suddenly, I was okay with leaving the Schloss. (Not happy...but okay.) I realized that my induction into global citizenship opened up every door imaginable to me and that if I applied what I learned to every door I walked through, I could eventually end up back on the Schloss terrace with some new stories to tell. (Maybe next time I can stay more than a week!) So now I'm excited to start this journey! I'm ready to be back home so that I can finish building the foundation upon which I can start giving back from what the Seminar has given me. I'm so ready to travel the world.
Thanks to everyone who made this possible. To Dr. Wood and Carol especially for taking us and being wonderful. And to all of you guys Dee, Rusty, Julissa, Audrey, Chandelle, Melissa, Clara, and Katie! I know we'll all always have a special connection after what we've been through together. And we are definitely getting together to share those pictures!
I don't know. Let's take it from the top:
In the days before leaving to Salzburg, everyone kept telling me to "have fun." In the back of my mind, though, I was skeptical. Fun? It's going to be a rigorous course of study. "Get smart," maybe, but "Have fun?" I knew there wouldn't be much time for leisure, and I was okay with that. I just had to brace myself for the loads of information that promised to enlighten me. Beyond that, I didn't know what to expect. I mean, could this trip really impact me in the way it was said to do so? What was the meaning of a global citizen? Was it really that important? Would I get along with everyone? Would I like the food?
Despite all these questions, I was ready to expect the unexpected. The only thing I wasn't ready for...was how to leave this new place that I had fallen in love with. Not just the place, but what it stood for. What it meant to be a global citizen. I had no idea just how complete the 7 day course study would be. Have fun? I had a blast. Get smart? I've been transformed. This ISP was no joke. It was a life changing experience.
The Salzburg Seminar embodied the concept of global citizenship down to the very lifestyle we led while we were there. If you think about it, it brought together a variety of students, staff and faculty from all over the world--different backgrounds, ages, ethnicities, you name it--and forced us to work together, live together and learn together. We were able to interact with the locals and get to know the different lifestyle and customs of a foreign country. (Even if we didn't like the fact that everything closed at 7, we respected it and tried to rush into town before then.) So while we were learning about collaborating, understanding and communicating on a global level we were able to actively apply the lessons we were learning. And from the sound of it, our ISP group did a particularly good job of overcoming the obstacles that take form when you bring a group of strangers together to pursue a common goal.
If I had to explain my 8 days at the Seminar to someone I would tell them this:
Sometimes in life you come across people who you might deem as "sheltered." The type of person who for one reason or another hasn't been exposed to much of what we call the "real world." And when this person finally steps out of their sheltered cocoon, they're stripped of their naivety and have a "coming out" in which they finally understand how the world really works. But, how much do you really know about the "real world?" Not just the United States and oil prices or the Iraq War, but the global interconnectivity and responsibilities of tending to and embracing these connections. The "real world" not as defined by one specific culture, but on the global scale that involves the real world. If you are like I was, then you might not understand as much as you thought you did. The Salzburg Seminar took me, a sheltered person, and led me to my coming out into the real world.
The day before leaving Salzburg, I was pretty sad. I thought I would cry. It's such a beautiful place and such a beautiful process happens there. I didn't want to leave the people, the city, the castle. I didn't want to go back to a life where I wasn't fed every 3 hours, where bikes weren't as popular or where I couldn't look out my window to see the most magnificent landscape each morning. But most of all, I didn't want to go back to a life where I wouldn't essentially be living with all these brilliant people, the faculty, staff and the students. I miss the community the most.
But by the end of our wrap up session on Wednesday evening, it occurred to me that the Salzburg Seminar was only the tip of the iceberg. Suddenly, I was okay with leaving the Schloss. (Not happy...but okay.) I realized that my induction into global citizenship opened up every door imaginable to me and that if I applied what I learned to every door I walked through, I could eventually end up back on the Schloss terrace with some new stories to tell. (Maybe next time I can stay more than a week!) So now I'm excited to start this journey! I'm ready to be back home so that I can finish building the foundation upon which I can start giving back from what the Seminar has given me. I'm so ready to travel the world.
Thanks to everyone who made this possible. To Dr. Wood and Carol especially for taking us and being wonderful. And to all of you guys Dee, Rusty, Julissa, Audrey, Chandelle, Melissa, Clara, and Katie! I know we'll all always have a special connection after what we've been through together. And we are definitely getting together to share those pictures!
Reminisces of Salzburg
Well, so much for sleeping all night in my own bed! I woke up at 4:00 am and laid there, trying to will my body back to sleep -- after all, I don't have a meeting to go to nor any homeworke to do and intended to "sleep in!" But my mind started racing in reference to this "last Salzburg blog" not allowing me to rest! So, here are some random thoughts so that I CAN go back to bed and "sleep in!"
This last week in Salzburg has been an eye opening week, a week of affirmation, and a very full week of learning for me. There is so much that I did not know and do not know (hey, don't agree so heartily on what I don't know! :)). Mary Catherine Bates affirmed for me that curiosity and respect for people is of great importance. Indifference causes a wide gulf! The greatest joy for me has been meeting so many people who are interested in other people as people. It has not been a week of indifference, but rather a week wherein a group of students from two different colleges and faculty who have traveled the world were curious about each other and so very respectful of others' life experiences.
This has been a week of questions and thought provoking statements in which we, the learner have to come up with our own answers. We weren't given a manual on how to become a "global citizen." As we started the week with maps I was reminded of "The King and I" (I know it's just a movie) and how young Chulalongkorn brings a map of Siam to Anna as a gift. I really did not know that there were so many different maps printed from so many different perspectives! Looking East to West -- America isn't in the center and neither am I! Being others' minded, curious, kind and respectful -- THAT was the affirmation received this week.
Our TCC Salzburg team has really become like family! Clara, Julissa, Chandelle, Audrey and Katie will be moving on from TCC to change their world little-by-little and with great confidence! Clara has a quiet, confident spirit that translates to great care and concern as she travels internationally. Julissa took the "bull by the horns" with great control as she unexpectedly sat in front of a room full of people leading her groups presentation! Only we from TCC knew she felt she was out of her element -- and she did a marvelous job! Watch out New York!
How Chandelle and Audrey managed on so little sleep I'll never know! Chandelle is a marvelous "global" teacher to her children and will be able to open so many students' eyes when she gets in the classroom! Audrey has been an awesome teacher this week. She is the epitome of curiosity and respect of the people around her. Apple juice and macaroni and cheese are reminders for me of Audrey. Reminders I'm so glad to have as she begins a new journey in her life.
Melissa's world is changing -- it was so fun for me to watch her "discover again" some "loves" she'd forgotten about! Michelle is such a "people person!" There will be no containing her energy for her curiosity about people and the world. Katie is already so "well traveled" at her age. She has such a love for new experiences and is a young lady who will change her world starting with A&M! She changed my view from land to the mountain top and waited for me to catch up! Rusty, our "other" this week has truly been an inspiration and a gentleman. He, too is interested in ... everything! Without really intending to be, he was a magnet this week - meeting new people and answering questions in an unforgettable way!
Our fearless leaders, Dr. Wood and Carol prepared our team to do their best and we did! It was so fun to get to know these two women outside of the classroom. This TCC team of encouragers was such an inspiration to me. What a wonderful way to spend a week -- staying in a "real" castle -- relishing the beauty that God created in Salzburg -- learning from and meeting new people who would become friends from all over the world! This truly has been an experience of a life time and as said before by so many of our "team," a wonderful dream come true!
We've shared a glorious week and as Rusty has said so many times ... "Do you remember the times we went to Austria and spent a week in a castle?" Rusty, What a week to remember!
This last week in Salzburg has been an eye opening week, a week of affirmation, and a very full week of learning for me. There is so much that I did not know and do not know (hey, don't agree so heartily on what I don't know! :)). Mary Catherine Bates affirmed for me that curiosity and respect for people is of great importance. Indifference causes a wide gulf! The greatest joy for me has been meeting so many people who are interested in other people as people. It has not been a week of indifference, but rather a week wherein a group of students from two different colleges and faculty who have traveled the world were curious about each other and so very respectful of others' life experiences.
This has been a week of questions and thought provoking statements in which we, the learner have to come up with our own answers. We weren't given a manual on how to become a "global citizen." As we started the week with maps I was reminded of "The King and I" (I know it's just a movie) and how young Chulalongkorn brings a map of Siam to Anna as a gift. I really did not know that there were so many different maps printed from so many different perspectives! Looking East to West -- America isn't in the center and neither am I! Being others' minded, curious, kind and respectful -- THAT was the affirmation received this week.
Our TCC Salzburg team has really become like family! Clara, Julissa, Chandelle, Audrey and Katie will be moving on from TCC to change their world little-by-little and with great confidence! Clara has a quiet, confident spirit that translates to great care and concern as she travels internationally. Julissa took the "bull by the horns" with great control as she unexpectedly sat in front of a room full of people leading her groups presentation! Only we from TCC knew she felt she was out of her element -- and she did a marvelous job! Watch out New York!
How Chandelle and Audrey managed on so little sleep I'll never know! Chandelle is a marvelous "global" teacher to her children and will be able to open so many students' eyes when she gets in the classroom! Audrey has been an awesome teacher this week. She is the epitome of curiosity and respect of the people around her. Apple juice and macaroni and cheese are reminders for me of Audrey. Reminders I'm so glad to have as she begins a new journey in her life.
Melissa's world is changing -- it was so fun for me to watch her "discover again" some "loves" she'd forgotten about! Michelle is such a "people person!" There will be no containing her energy for her curiosity about people and the world. Katie is already so "well traveled" at her age. She has such a love for new experiences and is a young lady who will change her world starting with A&M! She changed my view from land to the mountain top and waited for me to catch up! Rusty, our "other" this week has truly been an inspiration and a gentleman. He, too is interested in ... everything! Without really intending to be, he was a magnet this week - meeting new people and answering questions in an unforgettable way!
Our fearless leaders, Dr. Wood and Carol prepared our team to do their best and we did! It was so fun to get to know these two women outside of the classroom. This TCC team of encouragers was such an inspiration to me. What a wonderful way to spend a week -- staying in a "real" castle -- relishing the beauty that God created in Salzburg -- learning from and meeting new people who would become friends from all over the world! This truly has been an experience of a life time and as said before by so many of our "team," a wonderful dream come true!
We've shared a glorious week and as Rusty has said so many times ... "Do you remember the times we went to Austria and spent a week in a castle?" Rusty, What a week to remember!
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