The First Step to Fulfilling my Purpose
It’s hard to find what your purpose in life is. Once you have figured it out, there’s nowhere to go but forward. I’m one of the lucky people that has found her purpose early on. I believe my objective in life is to make an impact in the world, and that impact is to improve the lives of others by first creating sustainability in all countries. I was excited to attend San Dieguito Academy because it’s a school that encourages students to follow their passions and provides the resources to do so, no matter how unique it is. When I started at SDA I immediately joined Interact club. I was so excited to be surrounded by other students who value, and thrive off of, this energy and passion for service work.
Shortly after I began my freshman year of high school something very unexpected happened. The Rotary club, which runs Interact club, was hosting a student exchange program for the Interact students of San Diego. When this opportunity was presented to me it was crystal clear in my mind that I would be one of the 10 students attending the trip, and sure enough I was. This trip to India ended up being the most powerful thing I have ever been a part of. I have learned that before I can go off and “fix the world” I need to be educated about what fixing this world may mean. This trip definitely opened my eyes to the reality of hardships many face today. I made sure to not set any expectations before leaving for India. After all, I was going somewhere with a completely different culture and I didn’t know what to expect. This allowed me to be exposed to the highs and lows of India and appreciate it all.
Each exchange student on this trip stayed with a host family. This made the trip authentic because I could have an understanding of what it is like to live with a traditional Indian family. This meant having curry constantly poured on your plate and not always having the privilege of toilet paper. Most importantly, I was able to experience the love shared within an Indian family. I was expecting that being 8,000 miles away from home I would miss my family, although that was not the case. I didn’t miss my family because my host family made me feel right at home. I really understood the meaning of the saying “Home isn’t where you live, it’s where you love.” I was so privileged to have stayed with a family that welcomed me in with loving arms, although it really wasn’t just them who were welcoming; it was a pattern that I noticed throughout all the people I met in India.
The food in India definitely played a major role on the trip. When you hear Indian food isn’t the same in America that is in fact the case. Not only is it that the food 10 times spicier in India, the difference in flavor is insane. You can taste the authentic spices in each dish, which makes the flavor much richer. Getting used to a different palette of cuisine was one thing although adjusting to the portion size was much more difficult. I remember the first few nights thinking it was the respectful thing to do to finish my plate. They would keep putting more on. I then learned to just leave enough on my plate so they know I was full, if being full is even a concept in India. The host families would feed you so much that one of the students on this trip had to go to the extent of flushing his food down the toilet. Nonetheless the food on this trip was so superb I absolutely missed it when coming home.
We also went to many schools on this trip where I shadowed different students. Every time we would go to a school there would be a big ceremony. We would enter and they would put a red dot above our nose called a “Tika.” After receiving a Tika, we would be sprinkled with marigold flower petals. This happened at every school, after which we would be welcomed by the students who performed songs, dances, or even poems. This was their way to welcome guests. It was such a grand welcoming that we didn’t expect.
The welcoming was remarkable and I really enjoyed getting to know the students we shadowed. I was able to comprehend that although we are students with different backgrounds and live in very different parts of the world, we are all still just people. When it comes down to it we have so many similarities that bring us together. It was so much fun getting to make new friends and connecting on the same level that we do with people in America. I am so happy to have made lifelong friendships.
In addition to going to privileged schools we also visited slum schools. These slum schools were so inspirational because they were built in areas that have a high population of poor people. These schools are attended by people whose parents never went to school so it gives this new generation a chance at a successful life. They also offer after-school support for homework because help is not provided at these students’ homes because the parents do not have the knowledge to contribute assistance.
It was a privilege to see slum schools and the services they offer because it made me happy to know that these children with basically nothing still have a chance for an education. If they have an education it can lead them to so many possibilities. For example, there was a woman we met who had graduated from one of these schools and she ended up opening her own tailor shop. It gave me so much hope for these students to see that even though they have very little their dreams are still possible because they have these resources.
As well as visiting amazing projects, such as these schools for the poor, we also got to take part in service projects. One of the most beneficial ones was participating in “National Polio Immunization Day.” Polio, or poliomyelitis, is an infectious viral disease that can strike at any age and affects a person’s nervous system. We have never been closer to eradicating polio, although there are still some small parts of the world that are infected by it. “National Polio Immunization Day” is a time where volunteers will go to small villages and put two drops of oral polio vaccine on a child’s mouth. It was a beautiful experience because those two drops make a direct impact in the world and we were saving a human beings life.
Additionally we visited monuments such as India Gate, the Red Fort, Akshardham, Bahai Temple, Jama Masjid and the Taj Mahal. Like most people, for us visiting the Taj Mahal was definitely a highlight. Hearing about it and seeing pictures online made me still wonder why is it given so much attention, but when I saw it in person my mouth really did drop. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. It is something you really can’t understand the beauty of until you see it for yourself. The trip would have been worth it just seeing the Taj Mahal, so everything else I had experienced made it spectacular.
The last thing about the trip I want to highlight is the people. Everyone I met at the schools, the monuments I visited, or even on the street, they were just purely kind. They were some of the most genuinely respectful people I have ever met. I was told that it is just because of their culture, they respect their elders and even strangers. It is something Americans truly lack, and I was thrilled to be able to witness so much compassion. Although I did a lot of traveling when I was younger, India is somewhere I cannot compare to any of the other places I have ever been to. Also, traveling through an exchange program allowed me to travel in a way where I could feel a part of a new culture. I was thrown into the culture rather than simply being another tourist. This study abroad program gave me hope that change around the world is possible and now I have the tools to do so.
