Dragon Boat and Marina Bay, Singapore 2023
I don't have a photo from my first escape, but it was actually to soccer camp and NC State when I was 10-years-old. Disclaimer - yes it is the same university that I graduated from and my cousin also. I did not know that was how it would play out 8 years later, but I'm glad it did.
I remember I stayed at my cousin's house and we would drive back and forth to the day soccer camp. I remember the quiet. It was quiet in the home of my cousin. It was quiet on the soccer field. I thought it was strange it was so quiet. I know now it was actually a relief from the fighting and arguing from my parents which made the quiet so strange!...lol
My cousin is a pro soccer player so naturally, I thought I would follow in her foot steps and travel the world. Ummm...well yes to the travel the world part, but no to the pro soccer. Although I have kicked a soccer ball around in other countries, does that count?
After being a whole 5-hour drive away from home (for a 10-year-old it seemed far) and meeting so many nice and kind people. I realized I could trust people outside the home. And from then on, I was hooked. Any chance I got, I went away.
I remember I was always very quiet. I didn't know what to say. I didn't quite know who I was outside the home. I guess I had suppressed alot of emotions, I didn't know how to express or be in healthy conversation. That didn't stop from traveling, I was addicted to the quiet, the peace I guess it was. I didn't know it then, I thought it was just the travel. I thought peace and quiet were a destination
I debated if I should mention this, but I believe it has meaning...
My stomach ached like never before my first week away from home. I had no idea what it was. I'm sure my cousin thought I didnt like her cooking, but that wasnt true. I couldn't eat. From my photos, you can tell I definitely like to eat. I didn't know it put after I returned home, every women can imagine what was there to meet me for the first time. I was pretty upset. My mom seemed overjoyed for some reason. I honestly didn't want the responsibility - I was 10! Of course, this foreshadowed the rest of the responsibility I would claim that year.
This is definitely one of the big narratives of my life - responsibility. Knowing what is and what is not your responsibility is definitely something to get clear. As I mentioned in the last post, it likely was not my responsibility to have to grow up so fast at 10 being separated from my mother and losing our home, but it is what it is. It's done. It is, however, my responsibility to share my story to help you heal and break free!
Which led me to one soccer camp after another and then eventually around the world...
Matthew 10:27
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