Hey everbody,
Kayleigh here again, here to update you on our travels but this time a tang more sorrrowful than last time. Today's my last day with the group so I'm feeling a bit mushy, but in the words of the infamous Kyle Moore, "don't think I'm soft" :).
This blog entry's purpose isn't to describe a beautiful place or an archeological sight that moved us all; it's purpose is moreso to describe the intense bond that 10 strangers have stumbled upon and I'm sure has moved us more than any painting or building. I think in order to understand how absolutely, incredibly, and amazingly deep this bond is, you have to understand a little fact about yours truly: I am not by any standard an overly emotional person, and the dire need to express my absolute love for a group of 10 people (and I mean every single one of them) has truthfully never happened. But honestly, this just goes to show how mind-blowingly amazing these people are. I am so grateful/lucky to have had the opportunity to travel with such genuinely kind, intelectual, motivated, strong, and most of all loving and accepting individuals. They are hands down 10 of the best people I have ever met and I am positive that I will whole-heartedly miss the Utopia that is this group.
Not once did we ever have a fight or any sort of conflict worth feeling any tension over, and instead of whispering about eachother behind our backs (which happens in so many other groups) we would at some point in one of our intense conversations each day go around and share what we loved and admired about eachother. For me, this contradicted every group setting I have ever been in, where the competition to be the limelight and to intimidate and one-up eachother with our selfishness is a constant presence. This group did the opposite completely. Our main focus was always to enable, encourage, and love eachother, and that to me is one of the most beautiful things mankind can experience. To put our defenses aside, even in a group of strangers where vulnerability is at it's peak, and simply open-heartedly love and appreciate eachother is unheard of. I am so lucky to have experienced this type of human bond. The connection the 10 of us shared was a spiritual one, deeper than any graspable concept that my fingers can type for human understanding. But I do know that it exists in all of us; flowing through our veins and pumping through our hearts. We have come to Europe as blocks of wood, eager to be molded by the experiences and people that we met, and I feel that we have all become art simply by the ungraspably intense bond that we share. I have experienced a miracle that exist is tangible friendships and will continue living in the intense love that I have for these people. I love you all so much and thank you for welcoming me into your friendship. I love you all and thanks for showing me the best two weeks of my life. :)
Lots of love,
Kayleigh