words from a friend

I have met a few people in my short stay here thus far and one of them guided me to the blog that he and his friends have been writing. As I was reading this morning, I ran across this explanation of the desire to travel and it wraps up the overall feeling so well. Below is an excerpt from this beautifully written piece.

"Meeting other travelers is easy. We all have one thing in common: the simple fact that we are far away from home and full of a desire to explore what is unknown to us. The initial conversations generally begin the same way. Where are you from? What do you do? How long are you traveling for? Where are you coming from? Where are you heading? And then, they evolve into something more personal. Within minutes, the chuckles begin and they too grow into something more substantial. The bond is formed, and before we know it, our social group has expanded. We say and do things in front of each other that only our closest friends usually witness. We need this connection.

Gaining new friends from differing cultures is a wonderful thing. Most of us travel because we want to expand our perspective on everything around us. What better way to do this than by conversing endlessly with people from different corners of the globe? It´s entertaining; it´s interesting; it´s humbling beyond belief.

We are better people because of them. We are inspired to try new things, go new places, and look at the world in a different light. And we get to be the ambassadors for our own culture, one that is often shadowed by unfair stereotypes (what culture isn´t?). It becomes our responsibility to show by example that not all Americans are loud, ignorant drunks, destined for return trips to Cancún for the chicks, beach, and booze. We too come from a beautiful place that we can take pride in, full of amazing people who are doing great things." (Taken from http://milesformastatal.wordpress.com/2009/02/06/where-my-peeps-at/)

So the question that I ask; why isn't it like this when we are home as well? Shouldn't we be able to shed these notions in any situation. This is what I aim for. And this is what I believe I have found in my new friends in Enid. Thank you for that. And thank you for my friends in Xela as well for pulling me out of my comfort zone and putting me in situations that are real and inspiring. I only wish that I could take this perspective to everyone I meet and be this person that is real and genuine.

Just something to think about....