The Little Lessons of Travel

In Spring of 2011 I was on a trip to Greece with my school, and the country gave me so much more than I ever could have imagined. The rolling hills, beautiful historical landmarks and the warm people were all reasons that Greece has never seemed to leave my heart. One sunny morning in Delphi, I looked out on the water while I ate breakfast and took in the breathtaking landscape, knowing that I would be going through a tour of ancient Greek ruins. Little did I know that at the end of the hike I would be on top of the world... or at least feel like it. As I stood at the top of the mountain, admiring all of the ruins, green grass and clear blue sky, I realized how fortunate I was to be where the beginnings of modern civilization had grown from. I felt strong yet humbled by the extraordinary beauty that the world had presented to me on that mountain top. I could have stayed up there for hours, breathing in the fresh air, just feeling so deeply content with this wonderful world. That day is imprinted in my mind for so many reasons, but mostly because of how majestic the ruins and nature were together. The man made buildings and statues next to the open skies reminded me of what it means to be human. Life is about the harmony we must create within ourselves and within nature, and to this day it sticks with me. Greece was a country of natural beauty with the reminder of how far human civilization has come, yet a humbling reminder that we are simply human and our existence on this earth can not be summed up by one lifetime, it is summed up through thousands of generations and their impacts on nature and human society.