So, in the middle of all of the sadness surrounding my uncle's death I recieved some good news. Early in September I applied to go to Africa to teach (most likely in 8th or 9th grade). There was room for 10 people to go and I was chosen as one of those people. So now I'm really excited to go. It's all I can think about and when I'm online all I do is look at the place I'm going to be staying, what I'm going to do in my free time and what others have written about their experiences.
I applied to go to Africa because I wanted to help others (give back to society) and I really want the experience (it's an experience of a lifetime). This is one of those things where the timing has to be perfect, and my timing is fortunately just that. Because of the recent death in our family I want to start living my life even more to the fullest. I don't want any regrets. I'm a timid, shy girl by nature so it's hard for me to always say what I think and do what I want to do. I want that to change, because I don't think anyone really reaches their full potential if they're living under someone else's shadow.
Anyway, I've told myself that my fears are not going to hold me back anymore. I'm going to do things that make me nervous and scared. I'm going to do them even if they make me shiver. I've looked into what kind of activities I can do in my free time in Africa and decided that if there's an opening, I'm going to go tandem skydiving. I might even try bungee jumping. I'm afraid of heights, but I've always wanted to try skydiving, so I'm going to bite my teeth together and do it (and it helps that I'll have a professional push me out of the plane)!
I'm also a bit afraid of being in a totally new place pretty much all alone. I'm used to relying on others to fix travel plans and make big decisions, but when I go to Africa it'll be all me. I'm afraid I won't be able to do it, but I know that once I throw myself into it it'll go fine. I have the same fears about teaching. I've heard the teaching methods are different in Africa then here in Norway. I'm nervous I won't know what I'm supposed to teach the kids, or that I won't be able to teach in a way that will help them remember the information. I guess these sorts of fears are normal about anything one hasn't done before. Once I get used to all the new stuff it'll probably be a piece of cake, and I'll look back at it and think "What the heck was I so nervous about?". Some people say that if you're not nervous, you won't do as well. I hope they're right because that means I should do very well indeed.
