Since I wrote that last post, some things have gotten a bit harder here. The main thing that happened was that Luke Rogers, who I sang with in Shades last year, died in a boat accident last weekend. Shades has been a wonderful support network over the last week, but it's hard to be away from them all, because this is such a painful loss of a dear friend.
When I studied abroad here two years ago, one of the main things I learned was the importance of family. I mean, I've always loved my family tremendously, but I used to feel like I could run around and be away endlessly--a modern, transient kind of approach to life. But when I spent months living with Ecuadorian homestay families, experiencing for myself what it's like to live at home into your 20's, always staying local and connected based on family, as opposed to travel or work ambitions, it became really important to me to make sure I was home enough. I began to make a conscious effort to spend time with my family whenever I got the chance, and my brother's wedding at the end of summer was an amazing time to celebrate among those we have known and loved for most of our lives.
It's sort of sad and ironic that I have returned to Ecuador, where I learned that very important lesson, at the expense of being close to the people I love. Shades is a family for me too...as I've told some people, it's not like I'm enamored with a cappella music as an art form (gasp!), it was more that I so enjoyed the time I got to spend with my friends in Shades. So to lose someone like Luke, who we were all so close with, and to be away, back where I learned how to cherish spending time with those I love...it just seems a little backwards. But anyway, here I am, still struggling to figure out what's keeping me here, knowing that this is a challenge that I guess I'll inevitably grow from.
Anyone who's reading this should probably have gotten an email from me with my contact info and my itinerary for my return trip to the US for med school interviews, but if you missed it, here's the itinerary again:
Oct 5-6 - Chicago
Oct 7-9 - NYC
Oct 10 - Ann Arbor
Oct 11-14 - SF
Oct 15-17 - LA/SD
Oct 18 - back to Quito
Let me know if you'll be in the same place as me at any point. I'd love to see you. I miss you and I'm sending some Ecualove back home.
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