An Important Reminder
My Spanish vocabulary is rapidly expanding to include several new types of guns, bullets, prison personnel, and medical diagnoses. It is very interesting to see what I’m picking up easily versus what doesn’t come so naturally. There are definitely some new words that I hear and ask what they mean every time, but others stick after the first instance. I’ve been reading lots of testimony for the upcoming trial, combing through all the different accounts of what happened, and it has been very interesting to see in practice how different accounts can be woven together to create so many different stories, all of which are theoretically plausible. I can’t go into too much work detail for the week, but it’s been very enlightening, to say the least.
This week was jam-packed with lots of dancing, adventures, travels, restaurants, games, soccer, late nights, early mornings, and as much else as we could manage as possible. With the French National Assembly elections happening this weekend and the next, I headed to Buenos Aires with some friends to visit the French Consulate so they could appoint a proxy to vote for their interests. We then had an excellent lunch, explored some of the shops and parks, and went to a french cafe to eat pastries and work. There was also a wonderful Costa Rican night hosted by the lovely ticas, and they cooked the most delicious array of food.
Our friend, Andéol, officially became the first to leave Argentina. We said goodbye for hours last night, but I was ripped away in the middle of the festivities to attend a meeting for the International Competition Team to choose who would attend each competition. It was rather rude, but I was able to run downstairs after and catch the last teary hour and many rounds of hugs. (I joke, I love ICT and am very happy to be part of such a wonderful group of people.) We trudged outside when the uber arrived, each carrying a vestige of his time here, hoping it was a cruel charade and that he wasn’t actually going to leave in just a few moments. After more hugs, tears, and goodbyes, he rode away; the beginning of the end became all too real. The rest of us went for ice cream directly after for a much-needed spark of joy.
My friends and relationships run rampant through all of my blog posts, the main characters of all my fondest accounts and most cherished experiences. That is not to say that I do not enjoy the occasional moments of solitude and solitary exploration, but the most beautiful things often come when sharing life with others. Although we shared only a little over a month together, we spent every day together, eating almost every meal, talking about classes and work, yelling at each other about soccer, and simply living life. I will truly miss getting to do these things together, and I do not look forward to saying goodbye to so many others in the next month. I do, however, find solace in knowing that I have our memories and their lasting impact. Even if I try, I will never be able to forget what these wonderful people mean to me and how we shared life, for however short a time.
It’s experiences like these that remind me of the profound importance of friends and family. I have only ever experienced honest farewells and natural deaths, never the tragedy of having someone ripped from me by the hands of another. But this is not the case for many people. The upcoming trial is one of a family seeking justice for their son, who was robbed of life and love far too soon and with no justification. I want to help in every way I can in the hope that other people do not have to endure such horrible loss and injustice.
