The summer is over, whether we got the internship we wanted or that highly paid research position it’s all behind our minds as we take more time to focus on the upcoming school year. As I try to unwind my summer and grasp the realities I was faced with I am constantly amazed at what I learnt and yearn for the next time I will visit Tanzania. To say the least it was probably my life defining summer in all aspects of my life (some I will not explore in public).
One astounding lesson that keeps recurring in my journal reflections is the change in perspective. Throughout my stay I had to learn from my mistakes whether it was the language, the daladala stop to my professors’ house, ordering food and many other things. As much as I would have loved to be completely competent the first time it just didn’t seem to work that way. In our ideal worlds, things always work out. We get that perfect grade on an exam, that job or that relationship everyone admires. But can we still pretend this is the reality? We surely don’t always get things right the first time and neither do we see a lesson in an experience immediately. A second glance might be necessary in changing our perspective. A change in perspective helps in recognizing things for what they are and not what you want them to be. This decision to focus brings not only a change in view but also a change in you.
An altered perspective may be all you need to rise above your current circumstances. A changed perspective and an altered attitude are a delightful combination for the life journey. Loving and accepting others begins with you loving and accepting who you are and transforming how you see the same old things. So stop wishing for the life of that other person because all you really need lies within you. Make a choice this moment to make a new beginning!!
