Asia.

currently listening to John Mayer and admiring his beautiful voice.

so, have you ever wondered what your purpose is here on earth?
have you ever wondered if there's more to life than what's in front of you?
i probably think about these questions more often than normal.

first of all i'm always questioning what my purpose here on earth is. we have all been placed here for a reason, a specific reason. i'm hoping that it's to educate our future. i really would like to impact someones life that would encourage them to impact another person's life. the domino affect can be so powerful and it only takes one courageous person.

my second question was actually answered this summer. for twenty years of my life i lived in a bubble. i hardly knew anything outside of the suburbs here in the midwest. of course i knew there was poverty in some areas and rich in some areas but that's all i knew. people live these routined lifestyles and know very little about the the countries outside of the United States. we have so much freedom and so many opportunities that many of us look past. as normal human beings we become selfish and want more. we hope that someone will invent something brilliant to make our lives even easier than it already is.
_you know what, sometimes i wish that i lived back in the day. where cell phones cost a fortune and social network was nonexistent. we would all be forced to personally interact with one another rather than via text or email. i believe that it allows everyone to become more socially compatible rather than socially awkward. sorry, just a side note.
anyways, this summer i spent six weeks in southeast asia. it was the best trip of my life and getting to experience something so incredible like that was such a blessing.

meeting the different people in asia allowed me to examine my life and appreciate it much more than i ever have in my entire life. the people over there think we all here live this perfect life. that we are land of the free, home of the brave. don't get me wrong because many of us do but their view on an American's lifestyle is unrealistic. they all have this irrational thought about us. i explained to some of the people that life is not easy here but i doubt they believed me.

in Bali, Indonesia i spent the week working with Vacation Bible School for the kids whose parents are missionaries. those kids were remarkable. they are absolutely different than the kids raised here in America. none of them are materialistic. they love the simple things in life and no one took advantage of one another. not saying that kids here are not like that but the ones i met over there were so different. they are all highly educated and are very curious about the important things in life. if i could choose to raise my kids in asia i would very much do so.

Brannon with some of the VBS kids.

in Penang, Malaysia i spent two weeks in the city my boyfriend and his family grew up in. it was my absolute favorite country and if i had the opportunity to live there i would take it in a heart beat. the people in Malaysia were so friendly. they get to know the people that live in the area and make the initiative to build relationships with one another. the food was also my favorite.

Our view of some of the island from our hotel.

in Bangkok & Chaing Mai Thailand i learned the most about myself. i learned that i was far too spoiled. i am not ashamed to own up to that because the resources in Thailand were no where near what we have. first of all, the water is repulsive. a few of us got sick because of the water there. here in America water is probably taken advantage of the most, there are those who would go to the ends of the earth to get clean water. Thailand also had a lot of stray animals. there were many beaten dogs, starving cats, and caged wild monkeys. it made me sad because here we treat pets like humans. we love them and they normally become our companionship. but over there, animals have no feelings and do not deserve to be treated with any love. breaks my heart.

City of Thailand

our last stop was Hong Kong. if i could compare Hong Kong to a city here in the states it would most resemble New York City. although, it was more highly advanced. electronics through the roof and resources to almost anything is out the door. Hong Kong was my least favorite because people lived at 90 mph. everyone was constantly on their iphones and face to face socializing was at a minimum. these people probably also live in a bubble because they are so far advanced that surrounding countries are no where near the evolved technology that has been created there.

Hong Kong.

this is all just a brief description of my experience in asia. if i told you everything i might as well write a novel. in conclusion to this i've appreciated life far more than ever. sometimes i tend to forget but i constantly remind myself about the people and things i saw last summer. those six weeks were forever life changing and if i could i would go back and do it all over again.

Dom