228The bravest thing I ever did was continuing my life when I wanted to die.
Juliette Lewis (via whereiamhappiest)
(Source: halfasiangirlproblems, via whereiamhappiest)
Today I have been gathering information on adopting a Chinese/Vietnamese orphan, obviously not because i feel ready for a child right now but just for future reference. There are way too many children in orphanages in china and Vietnam (and other countries- and i shall research these orphanages and countries in due course) that just aren’t receiving the love and attention that they deserve and we know that we could love one of these children as our own.
In China, girls especially are regularly just dumped on the steps of orphanages unwanted. And the huge influx of children, although they are fed and clothed, just aren’t stimulated with play and affection and thus the majority have delayed development and a host of other mental issues related to abandonment and neglect.
In Vietnam conditions in orphanages are close to prison-like :(
This isn’t a ‘trend’, it’s about potentially saving a life, making a difference and loving a human being with everything you have.
(via vid)
When thinking about travelling i got to thinking about how everyone always says ‘I found myself travelling, i grew and learnt so much.’ So i started considering what I have gained from my experience; what lessons i’ve learned and how these have in turn changed me…if at all.
I think first and foremost I have gained practical life skills- I can now successfully pee whilst in a squat position, maintaining my balance and managing to not pee all over myself. Lesson well learnt! In addition i know how to use chop-sticks with the skill of a native Asian and I know how to say hello and thankyou in at least 5 different languages and sign/make imitation noises well enough that i can make myself understood…oh yeah get me :)
I can also sleep in 32 degree heat without air-con, sleep on loud buses surrounded by complete strangers, squeeze into the smallest places and get comfortable and think of a wooden bamboo hut as ‘cosy’.
I think what I have mainly learnt from travelling is that i have never EVER had the right to moan. I know now that I need to try and look at things from a wider perspective when considering my misfortunes-I need to think of the kiddies in the rice fields in Vietnam playing in the dirt; playing with bugs instead of toys and the women on the streets of Thailand trying desperately to sell all sorts of shit (or themselves) for literally pittance just so they can eat! I am lucky simply, to have been born where I was.
When travelling there is a lot of time for introspection and its a good time to consider the person you are. When the going gets shit and your stuck on an island for 7 nights knee high in mud and with no shower well, you can either sulk about it or you can make the most of it….and this is what I tried to do. I think i have learnt to realise that whatever the situation or the experience, i can gain something from it and I feel like I have absorbed all the things I have done and seen into the person I am. I think looking at a really ‘dire’ situation as exciting, is definitely a big change in me.
So ultimately yes, I have had an awakening comparable to being hit in the face with a sledgehammer. I have had to adapt, accept the shit and suck it up, go through some grueling physical and mental journeys whilst being sensitive to cultural customs and regulations and have had to pee in front of 10 other women into a drain covered with rats and cockroaches. But in turn I have become a more patient, appreciative, easily pleased human being. I know that travelling has opened a new door inside me which will make me more welcoming to all the obstacles that life will throw at me and for once, I think ‘bring on the challenge’ because now I feel like I actually want to fight.
(via vid)
(Source: supercute, via whereiamhappiest)
