Halfway home, figuratively

My adventure through Eastern Europe has come to an end. It's rather bittersweet.

I'm glad to be back in a city where I can understand random chatting along the streets, signs in shop windows, and simply just being able to be understood by others if I am lost. Back East, I played a lot of charades and spent lots of time in silence except when I ran into an English speaking traveler. While their words were music to my ears, they lack the understanding of the culture of which I became a voyeur. If I found expats, I connected to their hip!

Eastern Europe, at first, scared me. It turns out it was the best trip of my life where I learned a whole heck of a lot of stuff about me. I know how I have changed, but I'm sure there are things I haven't noticed yet.

However, I noticed today, in my first few hours back in Spain, that I have become a MUCH better listener. After spending nearly 5 full weeks in silence, you really start to appreciate what people have to say. Not that I was a horrible listener before, just now, it shows that I am actually listening, processing, analyzing, and producing a genuine response... and it makes all the difference in the world... even if I don't understand most of what is being said.

Again, this is how we learn, teach, and share. Nothing in this world is separate; it is all divinely and intricately interconnected... and I can prove it without proving a thing.