Leap of Faith - Trip to Peru
I heard in a lecture once that all human fears stem from six primordial fears: failure, rejection, the unknown, death, isolation, and loss.
When you take a leap of faith, at least one – if not all – of those fears make you want to turn back immediately. But that's when faith has to take over and lead you on in spite of those fears.
That's the way it was when I went to Peru. I had no idea what to expect, I could have caught some dread disease, been caught up in a political uprising, the language barrier would isolate me for a time, I might have given up at any time and come home, having failed. But, placing my faith in God, I went forward and when the plane landed in dusty, dry, brown Piura I had a feeling that I would be okay.
After a few months of acclamation to the town and becoming more proficient with the language, I started volunteering at a Crisis Women's Shelter cooking and cleaning for the residents. The friendships that I made blossomed into an almost-family. They welcomed me in with open arms and I even became God-mother to a baby girl named Belin. Meanwhile I helped the mission parish that ran the women's shelter with groups of American volunteers that came into the town. Some of the volunteers painted the interior of the Wome's Shelter, they delivered food to needy residents, and started construction on an addition to the church that would become the first free clinic in the town.
Although the year I spent there was hard in many ways, mainly being separated from my family and friends, what I wasn't prepared for was the reverse-culture shock that took me the better part of three months to fully recover from. My culture shock to the US came in the form of self-isolation. My naturally social personality just couldn't manage to put myself out there and re-establish the friendships that I had made during and after college.
Unfortunately, culture shock is never the same twice, and everyone has different reactions. I'm always surprised even at my own reactions which are never predictable or the same. The best remedy for culture shock – going or coming – is prayer - HANDS DOWN! There's nothing that calms the waves of emotion that accompany major life changes than quiet time in front of the Eucharist.
Overall, the year I spent in Peru, the months of recovery, and now the reflection on those experiences has made me a much more intuitive person. I trust myself more, and I’ve learned to listen to the whisper of my guardian angel telling me what I should do. It’s also put things into perspective – as any amount of travel can do – as to the comforts of my everyday life that I routinely take for granted. Now, sometimes, I intentionally take a cold shower when I want a hot one – just to remember what it was like to live in Peru.
by Jessica Berrada