Reminiscing

As I was laying in my bed this morning before I had to go to work, I was reminded of my summer last year.  I remembered being in Peru sleeping on that top bunk.  I remembered the bright street light that always shone through the square opening in the top of the wall.  That light always kept me awake during the night.  I remember the one dog that would never stop barking during the night. I always wondered if it was barking at something going on in the streets, or just barking to be heard.  I remember walking.  Everywhere we went we walked all the time.  I remember the constant sand and crickets.  No matter where you went, they were with you.  No way to rid yourself or your belongings of sand or crickets.  I remember the ten minute battle I had trying to get a cricket out of my bag.  I remember Tottus (the grocery store we went to), El Mercado (the street market), Chalan (the ice cream we always got), and La Primavera (the street we lived on). I remember the food and our most humble cook.  I remember the beauty of the language and culture.  I remember seeing and experiencing things I had never thought I would experience. But most of all, I remember the people I met.  How wonderful these people are.  I realize how different my life would be had I not met them.  They taught me so many things.  They taught me a sense of gratitude that I otherwise would not be able to understand.  They taught me how to accept people as they are.  They taught me to love those that you don't know. They taught me to accept life as it is and be happy with what your current situation is.  As I think back on the little everyday things that I did in Peru, I realize that is what I miss the most.  Many times when I think back on my journey, it seems unreal, as if I didn't really live it, I simply watched a movie or read a book about a girl experiencing what I did.  But today, I am strongly reminded of it all.  Many times, I feel a deep longing to go back.  Hopefully someday I will get to go back, but until then, I can remember.  And remember I will, becasue my time in Peru will always remain apart of me.