I'm a new name and a new face around here... well sort of a new face. More like an old face returning. Last semester I spent studying abroad through a program called Semester at Sea. We lived on a ship and traveled eastward around the world and visited 11 countries: Nova Scotia, Spain, Morocco, Ghana, South Africa, Mauritius, India, Vietnam, China, Japan, and the U.S. (Hawaii and San Diego, California). Last semester was a dream of mine coming true. I learned more than I could ever imagine and am definitely a different person than when I first boarded that ship. I moved back on campus this semester and have been blessed to join the Ubuntu community. There are several reasons it is so wonderful:
1) After traveling the world and seeing intense problems first-hand, I really want to live my life simply so it doesn't negatively affect others. How perfect that that is Ubuntu's theme! So I'm loving living with a group of people who also want to live less so others can live more.
2) I love the "community" feel here. When I went to Ghana I stayed with a family in a village. Ghanaian and other African villages are highly interdependent with their communities. The children just run around and village adults watch over them. Women help each other out while making pottery rather than competing against one another. The families share their food even though they have little. And everyone is constantly in check with how others are doing. My Ghanaian village stay was one of my favorite things I experienced last semester because of their enjoyment of living with not much but living abundantly with one another. Ubuntu may be as close as I can get to an African village in America... so it's absolutely wonderful to continue my village stay back at Bluffton.
3) The community here in Riley Court has been living together for a semester already and they've gotten to know each other quite well. It's been great to see them interact in a way that truly resembles a family. They all joke around, dive into deep conversations, and just hang out. It's not that they're just living together, but they're really enjoying living together.
Even though I really miss traveling and constantly learning about new cultures, I'm excited to live with this passionate group this semester. I'm looking forward to living in a way that benefits our own souls and the needs of many around the world.
Kelsey Smith
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