"Efanayo"

At 30,000 feet above the earth, I am caught between the brightness of the stars in the night sky and the lights of the sleeping residents of Cape Town below. We said our goodbyes to our new South African friends and we are now returning home.

As we near 40,000 feet, and the darkness completely envelops the earth, you can hardly tell the difference between the stars and the city lights. I bet from space, the earth looks even more amazing. Each light a representing something different. Each light could be a representation of a family, or a person. From space, there are no borders (like how they are on maps) that separate nations and the people in them from one another. It all looks the same, just lights in the night, bright and alive as if saying "HEY! People live RIGHT here!" I now find this analogous to life right.

The United States and South Africa are very different, but also similar.

Spending time with the students of Stellenbosch University made me realize this. The tenacity and zest for pursuing a good and happy life is something we Americans shared with our South African counterparts.

We talked politics (bonded over our mutual dislike for our presidents), we talked about culture, and how we viewed relationships, both professional and romantic. We were adults. We were children. We talked business, but then reminisced over cartoon shows we watched when were kids (we watched the same shows!). We opened up to one another, and bonded over both the large and small things we had in common. We saw South Africa through their eyes, their fears, and their aspirations for their nation. They imagined the United States through ours. We connected. It was not hard. These students were no different from us. They were like us, with similar passions, hopes and dreams.

I was amazed. We bonded over our love for our communities, our hope to one-day use what we have learned to help others. Education is what brought us together. I am thankful to TAMUK. How else would we have ever had this opportunity?

The more we learned about each other the more we learned about ourselves.

As our group boarded our flight home, I found myself deep in thought. I took my seat. I was trying to remember something I read while I was looking at a painting in one of the museums in Stellenbosch. Something important. A man takes a seat next to me on the plane.

"Hullo, coming home from a trip?" His accent sounded very familiar.

"Yes, sir, from South Africa."

"Really? Me too. I was born there, I was just visiting family."

"That's great! Do you live in the US no-"

Before I could finish, his phone lit up and a picture of what I assumed was his family was visible. He smiled, told me "sorry, give me a moment" and answered the phone with a playful "who is this?” "You know who this is, dad!" Said a little girl, with an unmistakable American accent. A woman, also with an American accent, began to speak. He smiled ear to ear.

"I'll be home soon, I love you too". He is happy. I am sure they are too.

"Efanayo." That's the word I was trying to remember. "Efanayo."

"Efanayo. Sahlukile, kodwa sonke siyafana."

Similar. We may be different, but we are all still the same.

I am very thankful for the "life growth" this study abroad trip has given me.