Do you ever feel like life is moving so fast you can’t even process it? Although the days seem to be dragging on and on, the weeks, months and years of our lives just pass by. It feels like we don’t even have a moment to stop and think about what just happened, how we felt about it, or how it changed us. I heard someone explain it that as we get older, the years pass by quicker because we have more of them to compare them to, so each individual year seems to be getting shorter and shorter. Maybe it was with my birthday marking the passing of another year, or the fact that this is my last year of medical school, or that I’ve been waiting for this trip for years, I’m not sure but looking back at the six weeks I spent in Huancayo I feel like my world changed and I didn’t even know it.
Walking the streets of Peru, specifically in Aco reminded me so much of my childhood summers in Romania. Seeing the cows walking home from a day of grazing in the fields. Or the homes made of bricks made of ground and straw, just like my grandma’s house. Yes, the language and culture are different, but there was just something familiar about the atmosphere and environment that it was easy for me to soak in. It felt comfortable. It felt… like home.
I think anyone who has travelled outside of the United States has experienced it. There is a difference in the air. There is less of a sense of urgency and more enjoyment. Walking around the city, you don’t feel the stress that seems to cover the street in the US, instead the atmosphere is just lighter. Although our day to day was being planned by the FIMRC Staff, and we were there to just support and help with all the amazing programs they did, we felt a part of the team. We felt that even though we were just visiting, we were being helpful, and productive. Someone recently asked me what the most challenging part of my trip was, and I thought for a moment, and responded, “leaving.” I tried to think of something else and in that moment I couldn’t but as I reflected more something came to me. There were moments, when I wished my Spanish was better so that I could communicate more, or be more expressive, or teach something better. There were moments when I felt like my Spanish was holding me back from the potential of a great outcome instead of just a good one. There were moments when I would look over for help, and no one was there, and I would just have to forget the comment, those were the moments when I felt incompetent. So, I think I tried to make up for it by just loving the people as much as I could. Maya Angelou once said, “They may not remember your name, but they will never forget the way you made them feel.” That’s what I was trying to do, make them feel loved, cared for, worthy, and able to do anything that they set their mind to.
But really… saying goodbye to Peru, was challenging. It felt similar to my goodbyes in Romania. Over the summers when I was a kid, I would always dread the day we left to come back to the States. However, at that those moments I knew that in one year I would likely be back. Back to see my grandparents, my friends and family, and our dog, but with Peru I don’t know. Would I be back? When? For how long? Looking at the future now seems harder there’s so many other things in the way. Why did it have to be so hard? Now back in the States, I can’t believe just how easy it is to get back into the normal routine of life. For me I started a research elective and that’s when reality hit me that I wasn’t in Peru anymore. Although, I wish that I could just go back right now and not have to worry about school, applications and real life anymore, I can’t. Being a doctor has been my dream since I was little, and I’m almost there! There have been so many twists and turns in my journey that there are moments when I just have to stop and thank God for getting me to where I am today, because without His hand I couldn’t have made it. He had his hands on my life from the beginning and it’s amazing to see just how many times he stepped in for me. I’m looking forward to the journey that I will continue here in the States, and the career that I build that will hopefully take me back to Peru and to many other amazing places.
I have always been excited to commit to a career of service, but the experience of my trip to Huancayo really solidified my desires to use my career in medicine to not only work with the underserved in the city that I end up in but to also dedicate time to travel and work with underserved communities abroad. My trips to Romania, Thailand and now Peru solidified that for me. It brings me joy to be able to explore new cultures, see new things and try to understand how walks along life’s journey can be so very different for each one of us. I want to learn more about medicine all over the world and be a small participant in this global world. I’m looking forward to it, and not just in the future but on a regular basis in my present life. I want to live with the commitment to working with the underserved, as a partner.
During our trip, we had one debrief session, after a really emotional day. During the conversation Manouche emphasized this point she said that we should use the emotions that we felt to act as a catalyst for the activities and programs that we would choose to work with in the future, whether that be in the United States or somewhere else in the world. I once heard that it’s in places, situations, and activities that your heart breaks for where your passions lie. I think that’s true and it’s through our experiences and travels that we discover these places.
Entonces … para mi familia de Peru! Gracias! Gracias por todo! Gracias por permitirme en su comunidad. Gracias por mostrarme su vida. Gracias por compartir tus preocupaciones, miedos y fuerzas conmigo. Gracias por darme una experiencia que me cambió la vida, una que nunca olvidaré. ¡Les deseo a todos lo mejor, la paz y el amor para llenar sus vidas! Los extraño mucho a todos, y no puedo esperar el día en que pueda volver a verlos. ¡Hasta entonces! ¡Todo mi amor! Chau, ~Maria
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