i got them worried blues

"Being in a foreign country means walking a tightrope high above the ground without the net afforded a person by the country where he has family, colleagues, and friends, and where he can easily say what he has to say in a language he has known from childhood" - The Unbearable Lightness of Being, p 75


So, I am preparing for my first trip abroad by myself. I never thought it would be so hard to pack for 2 and 1/2 months abroad. I guess I have to explain a little bit about myself, where I am going, and why.
Two winters ago, I went to visit my friend Josh while he was living in Spain with this organization called Emaus. This organization is worldwide and the individual collectives all over are unified under the mission of alleviating the suffering of others. Each location varies in their work. Check out more of their work at emmaus-europe.org to get a better idea. I probably can't articulate it as well as the website does.

Anyways, Josh's familiarity with Emaus in France and Spain inspired me to search for a collective in Eastern Europe, as I am studying Russian and Slavic studies. I never really found vindication for study abroad programs through the university, mostly for the amount of money required, among other stipulations. I chose to go independently of the school, because a) it would be less costly (in theory!)  b) it would be a more intimate and rewarding experience to perform hard work and also immerse myself in another language and culture. Also, in my studies, I have really been interested issues in public health, more specifically women's health and policy. So when I read about the Bosnia Collective in Bosnia-Herzegovina whose primary focus was providing assistance to victims of human trafficking, I immediately contacted them. It sounded right up my alley. A few months later, as sometimes these things can happen slowly, I was officially accepted as a volunteer to work in an international youth camp in Srebrenica (chilling history!), Sarajevo, and Doboj, where the facilities for trafficked persons are located.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't taking this trip also as a sabbatical from Columbus, Ohio, USA, but mostly for the fact this last year has been a whirlwind of changes for me, for better or worse...I think mostly for the better, because I have never felt so confident in the direction my life was headed in. I'm sure, give me a few years, perhaps a few months, even, and the story will be different. However, I feel like I've taken on several challenges this passed year and I can look back and say it was still a beautiful time. There's some truth to the old adage, "what doesn't kill you just makes you stronger". So, I am keeping up with this blog to let my friends and family know how my experience in Bosnia goes. Also, I want to document for myself the summer that I anticipate to be a summer of sharpening and shaping of my true self. Of course, I hope to get a good grasp of Bosnian language and get background experience in a working for a non-profit organization, but I also want to come out of this experience as a more confident, spiritually stronger, and more balanced individual. I am planning on restarting my morning yoga routine and meditation while I am there, as well as seriously invest in my watercolor and pastel painting. I am a bit intimidated by the idea of a strained communication and the isolation that may follow from not being able to communicate with others abroad, but hey! it's what I signed up for, and I'm sure it will get easier as I go along. Inshallah, this will be the first of many times I will be traveling abroad!
I hope that you will enjoy reading my entries and I will be periodically upload pictures from the trip. Thanks for looking!