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A few weekends ago girls from our group travelled to Mendoza and had an unforgettable weekend. We were among the snow capped Andes and they truly didn’t look real because they were so magnificent. I had never seen something that made me feel so in awe. To get to this western region of Argentina we took a 15 hour bus ride. It was overnight so we had the privilege of sleeping basically the whole ride. On our way home, we were not as lucky. Our bus was breaking down in the middle of the night- we were at a crawl for hours. We finally made it to a rest stop and that was where the wheels on the bus stopped going round and round. After hours of sitting, waiting and wishing- having another bus come rescue us - our 15 hour bus ride became a 24 hour bus ride. We missed school and assignments that were due.
Fast forward to this week where we decide it’s a good and frugal idea to take another bus to Chile (this idea was wrong). Our 24 hour bus ride very quickly became a 36 hour bus ride. This time we were trying to cross the border when a freak snowstorm in the middle of spring decided to bear down and block the only route to Chile. The days quickly blurred together but a pinky promised decision was made - absolutely no more bus rides.
We never made it to Chile despite all efforts. Once we finally made it home Sunday afternoon my roommate and I basically jogged back to our apartment awaiting a hot shower and our beds. Just as I was about to open our door we heard a familiar noise. It was the same noise we had heard weeks earlier when a water pipe had broken and flooded our apartment. This time was much worse, there was a lot more water. It completely destroyed our floor and turned out our power- ruining the food we had in our fridge and freezer. Oh and we also didn't have any hot water. All we could do was laugh, there simply isn't any other option after a weekend like we had. The funny thing about this situation is that there will continue to be “super long bus rides” for the rest of my life. They will be in disguise of other obstacles. I will make plans and they won’t go at all as I thought they would. The point is that I can’t control any of them, the only thing I can control is how I choose to react to the situation that is put in front of me.
I used to always want to be in control, subconsciously. It wasn’t until someone pointed it out to me that I realized that about myself. I am so blessed to have been able to let that part of me go ever since I became a Christian. Life is an amazing adventure and you will miss part of it if you spend your time being upset at what could or should have been. God has bigger plans for us and everything has already been decided. So we danced and sang on the bus, we read books- listened to music and most importantly rejoiced in the fact that we are alive. After a combined total of approximately 72 hours on a bus over the course of 4 days I can say we I an amazing trip filled with lessons. In 2 weeks we’re traveling to Patagonia via plane... or should we do bus? (That’s a joke)