Think about what it means to learn. You're likely picturing yourself flipping through text book pages and staring at projector screen while a professor drones on about something you don't understand. Truthfully, this is the way we spend most hours of what might be considered the best days of our lives. We’ve all been told before that what we’re doing is a privilege, but sitting through lectures and coping with test anxiety can feel like quite the drag. In an effort to break up that sort of monotony, I decided to study abroad. I soon learned that changing your perspective and your environment can really help you fully understand not only what is in your textbook, but what you are learning about yourself and the world. Leaving the country helped me realize that education is not limited to the scope of institution and college is about much more than scoring credit hours.
As a nursing student, I traveled to Costa Rica to study their healthcare system. Upon arrival, I immersed myself in so much more than just bug spray. Everything from the views, weather, and animals, to the people, language and culture was unlike anything I had ever experienced. One of the most important factors of learning that is often overlooked is communication. In the States, it is easy to take the fact that most everyone can understand what you say for granted. During my time abroad, fluent English speakers were few and far between. I was surrounded by language that my high school Spanish notes could not have prepared me for. I struggled to understand my teachers, and grappled even more with articulating that fact. However, the language barrier forced me to communicate in ways that I discovered are universally effective. Body language and apologetic smiles became my primary source of connection. I noticed that most everyone I came in contact with was empathetic toward my inability to use my words. I began to think that this might be because it is much more difficult to convey dishonesty without words. I was forced into vulnerability, and thankfully, I was received with hugs, kisses, and understanding. I made life long connections with people all while using very minimal language. It was incredible to feel that sort of compassion cross culturally.
Although it would have been enough, the people I met offered so much more than just friendship. My group and I met farmers from indigenous tribes who do so much with so little. The hard work and passion they have for their products is something that is almost invisible in the United States. I also had the opportunity to meet a 93-year-old woman who has delivered hundreds of Costa Rican babies in her home. She did this with limited supplies and rare payment. In her hushed tone and quick accent, she taught me a new way to assess worth. It is not necessarily how many lives you touch, but how big of an impact you have on the lives you do reach. She displayed a breed of selflessness I had never seen before. Sitting in her tiny living room, she made me want to be a better person.
To say that I am grateful to have had the opportunity to expand the corners of my world at such a young age is an understatement. Exposure to a unique foreign environment allowed me to set new life goals and get excited about learning as much as I can. I can’t help but feel anxious about all the knowledge and experience in the world that I still know nothing about. Even more exciting is that there is a world full of people willing to teach me more than any text book could attempt to describe. If the opportunity to leave the country presents itself, take it. The lens through which you see the world will never be the same again. After all, grabbing that diploma at the end of these four years will mean much less without a wealth of experiences attached to it.
