Closure: The Experience of a Lifetime, and Much More to Learn

 What is closure? Is it the act of closing something? Is it a word that we are using to sum up this past month? Is it both? If there is one thing I know, it is that I am not ready for this summer to come to a close, nor am I ready to sum up this past month. I have been given one of the best opportunities I could have possibly received, and I know that this past month is one that I will constantly look back on. 

I came on this trip having very little expectations for what July had in store for me. I knew that I had high expectations for plays at The Globe, I wanted to see historical London, and I had to see Big Ben. I can happily say that all of my expectations have been met, and then some. 

I was raised in a non religious household. That does not mean that I did not know about God and the Bible. I had a general understanding, but if it helps you to understand my lack of knowledge prior to this trip, I learned why Easter is celebrated when I was eighteen. During this trip I was able to see multiple churches, learn about religion in historical England, and learn more about the Bible in general. Growing up I never had any regrets for not knowing about religion, in fact it is one of the parenting methods I most admire about my parents. It is both a blessing and a curse. I had to want to learn. 

On the one hand, when we were touring these beautiful churches and learning about the religious history, I was doing just that; learning. I did not come on this trip with any prior knowledge. While some may have been bored to "learn" things that they have been taught their whole life, I was never bored. On the other hand, it meant that I had to put in the extra work. If and when I had questions, I had to look them up. It was important for me to have that knowledge for me to apply it to who or what we were learning about that day. My lack of knowledge made this trip more challenging for me in those instances. Maybe my version of closure that I got from this trip is me coming to terms with knowing what I know, and not being embarrassed of not knowing what I don't. 

Do you know that metaphorical lightbulb that goes off in your head when you have an idea, or realize something you didn't before? That is what my entire month felt like. Every place we visited, I was able to draw it back to at least one other that we had seen before, or one thing that I had learned. For example, in the British Library I was able to see Henry VIII's personal Bible. After seeing that, I was able to remember that the religion in England was constantly changing with each monarch, and remember his daughters, Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Mary I, and that they both followed different religions thus making England follow different religions.

When I say that this trip was the experience of a lifetime, I mean it. When else will I have the freedom to pack up and live in London for a month? When else will I be able to wake up in the morning, visit the National Portrait Gallery and then spend the rest of the day walking around London, knowing that I will be able to do it all over again tomorrow and the day after. I was able to tour Hampton Court Palace with my new friends that I made, and hope will last. I was able to see the changing of the guard at Windsor Castle. Even on the days that I struggled to find the energy to keep going, I learned how to find the joy in the challenges. Whether it be that I found a cat sunbathing outside, or a new friend was there to make me laugh, I learned to rally together. When one of us is upset, all of us are there to provide support. All eleven of us were able to find some type of common ground and form friendships based on that. I am sure that in twenty years I will look back and remain so grateful for this month. I will be able to say "when I studied abroad in London..." and "When I went to Oxford or Brighton..." All of these experiences I do not take for granted, nor do I take for granted the friendships I have made. I will always remember late nights in the kitchen of the flat, or the horrible flight delay on the way to London. My entire month has felt like singing late at night with my new friends while walking down the streets of London. It has felt like the joy of knowing that you are forming deep and true bonds with those around you. This wasn't just my trip, it was ours.