So, I am back from Ethiopia now and I have pretty much gotten adjusted back to living and working in Austin. I absolutely loved my time in Ethiopia! I learned so much about the global water crisis and about the lives of our Water to Thrive beneficiaries. The people of Ethiopia were consistently so friendly and welcoming. Despite not having many of the luxuries and comforts that we enjoy in the U.S., like running water, hot showers, washing machines, microwaves and accessible clean water, the people I met in the villages we visited were so joyful and thankful. They are grateful for the things they do have: friends, family, faith, love and happiness. It truly made me reflect on my life in the U.S. I think that a lot of times in the U.S., we connect happiness to material wealth and things. In reality, it is not things that create happiness. Our beneficiaries showed me that first hand. They lead hard and physically demanding lives, but the children are curious, playful and giggly, and the adults are humble and faithful, praising God over and over for the clean water they have received (I doubt any of us in the U.S. have thanked God for our tap water lately).

Driving for hours to water project sites gave me a lot of time to reflect on my life and all that I was learning on my trip. For most of the trip, we did not have Wifi or internet, which I actually enjoyed because it gave me time to disconnect from the busy world of texts, emails, and social media. Being in Ethiopia with Water to Thrive, I felt so purposeful. Visiting water projects and seeing the impact that Water to Thrive has made first-hand made me feel like I was part of something life changing. For me, it was a very natural transition going from the U.S. to living in Ethiopia, but I definitely experienced culture shock when I came home. I was thrown back into the world of Wifi and the Internet and back into my life of comfort and privilege, but I couldn’t stop thinking about my Ethiopian friends. So many people are drinking dirty water and getting sick everyday back in Ethiopia. I felt guilty for enjoying things in Austin, like drinking $6 smoothies and going shopping. I never really felt guilty about doing these things before. I have realized more how lucky I am to have an education, to have my own apartment, to have all the food and clean water I need. Many times since returning, I have wondered why I am so lucky to have these things and others are not as fortunate. But, sitting around and feeling guilty does not solve anything. I have learned that the way to solve problems, like the global water crisis, is to use my privilege to help others with less privilege. I don’t know why I have been so blessed in my life, but I do know that with my blessings comes a responsibility to share those blessings, to use my voice to amplify others’ voices and to use my education and experiences to create awareness around social issues.

I struggled with feeling less purposeful once I was back working in the office. However, I tried to remind myself that sorting through pictures from my trip, posting on social media for Water to Thrive and writing blogs to share my experiences are still important to spreading awareness about the water crisis. The path to meaningful change is not a sprint, but a marathon, and even small tasks like posting on Facebook contribute to more awareness, more donations and eventually more water wells built. Through my experiences so far this summer, I have learned more about the water crisis and become passionate about working to end it. I have been reaffirmed of my desire to help others, which I plan to carry out by working in the non-profit field. Now, I am on the hunt for a job where I can fulfill my passion of helping people. Whether I work with people affected by the global water crisis abroad or marginalized communities in the U.S., I am not sure (wish me luck on figuring that out). But, overall, thanks to CAPS, I have a better idea of what I want to do in my career. I am so thankful to CAPS for giving me this experience and truly helping me find my purpose.