Fare Thee Well Europe...

As I depart from another milestone that consisted of four and a half months of my life, I have this to say:


Texas... Here I come.

A Quick Note...

I was going to start out my post this morning by saying something like,

"There is a day in every man's life when he admits defeat...
Well, to all of you Mavs fans out there, today will not be the day I admit defeat",

but then I felt like this was such a Mavs thing to do, you know? So I decided not to just post that. No, instead I will be the bigger man and concede my favourite team's loss last night in what was apparently an "OT Thriller" (I only get so much news in Europe). From what I hear, although I didn't see for half of the Season, I hear that the Mavs are good ball players, whether they are equally good characters are two different stories. Even the audience too. I think it somewhat unfortunate that they, the Mavs fans, chose Game 6 to start booing their former Michael Finley, but ya know, whatever. I haven't decided who I'm going to root for in the playoffs, whether I should be way nice and root for the Mavs (I like Texas, but man I really dislike Mark Cuban) or whether I should be myself and root for the Suns because I really don't like the Mavs (except for Avery Johnson cause he spent most of his career on our beloved Spurs). We'll see what happens.

Mavs fans, congrats to you, you beat an amazing team... This is probably the last time you'll ever hear me say that about the Mavs and the Spurs.

Another post to come soon...

AGAIN!!!

      ***Man, the Spurs did it again in Game 6 and boy am I excited. The boys play well under pressure, they always have and always will so I've got confidence in them for game 7.

      ***Well, now I am in Athens (Maroussi actually) staying with family friends who used to live across the street from me when I was a kid growing up. Just so you know they are a Grecian Family, but they lived in the states for a good while. Interesting fact for you to know, the Father of this family was the first Doctor to examine me after I was born. From the moment I arrived here they have been nothing but hospitable to me. Last night, the mother and I exchanged some recent pictures as well as some pictures from the past. Then she took me out to have traditional Greek Food, and ya know, I have to say, it's pretty dang good. Then this afternoon she took me to some really nice places in Athens that I haven't read about in any of those Travel Guides. They were places where you had this really distant view of the Acropolis or some other Athenian Ruins. All of the places have been pretty awesome and then she took me out to some really good lunch. ALSO, ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS YET: I AM GETTING TO WASH MY CLOTHES!!! Oh man, I can't tell you how excited am about that.
      Yeah, so far it's been really great here. Clarke, Andrew, Luke, and Daniel are still in the Patras area reclining on the wonderful beaches of Greece. They've all been doing well for those of you who are concerned about their well being. Originally, I was supposed to travel here by myself, but I ran into Clarke and Andrew while I was riding the Metro in Roma (which is actually really weird). Then they decided to go with me to Greece and cancel on the Hitch-Hiking thing. Although, they successfully Hitch-Hiked to Roma from Firenze in what turned out to be a really fascinating story. One I won't tell unless you find me in person. They've allowed me to tell it, but I don't have the patience or determination to write it all out right now. Anyways, we then Ferried from Bari, Italy to Patras, Greece and immediately we found out that Greece was cheaper than any other EU country we've ever been to. Did you know you can actually get a lot of really good food for 5 euros? Amazing. Simply Amazing. People came here and told me Grecian food was no good, but it's pretty dang awesome. Yeah, we got here and made it ok. On the train I met a really cool guy from Conneticut named Bret who knows a lot about Economics and so we discussed a little bit of that and some other really good stuff. Also met guy named Eric from Chicago who was really good at card games, and a huge fan of the cubs.
      If you want to know about Luke and Daniel, we split up after the Vatican Museum on Thursday morning and they left for Pompeii and Naples. I received an email from them this morning and they said they really enjoyed their time there, so I'm looking forward to the stories.

Bottom Line: Everyone of us is safe and sound, but maybe not smelling good.

      Traveling has been great. For me, I've learned a lot more about people, and about myself as well, than I ever expected to. I originally decided to come to Europe because I once read some essays by Rene Descartes when I was a sophmore in High School, and in it he talks about how he learned just as much in 2-3 years of traveling in Europe with the French Army during the Hundred Years War than he ever did in 20 years of Classrooms and books. And I've found this to be true. You know, you can talk about anything when you read a book, but the only place it exists is in your mind. It's not that it can't exist in your heart, but it's definitely a difficult thing to feel it and absolutely impossible to experience it unless you actually embrace it. I'm tired right now from my day of walking so I won't go into this, but chew on that idea for a while. I need a nap. Peace for now.

GO SPURS GO!!!!

GO SPURS GO!!! GO SPURS GO!!!

It's 6:45am here, but I got to find out what happened with my boys in last night's game. KEEP ON KEEPIN'ON SAN ANTONIO!!!! GO SPURS GO!!! GO SPURS GO!!!

Italy...

So right now I'm stuck in Italy with Luke and Daniel. Clarke and Andrew have made it around ok and tonight will be the 2nd time we've met up with them upon our first Departure from Venice. Currently I'm in Florence waiting for Luke to get our Hostel information figured out. I'm still really excited about the whole Rick Steves thing, cause check this out... Not only did we meet him 2 nights ago (The days of the week have long left my mind), but yesterday while in Cinque Terra we saw him again and he struck up a conversation with us for about 10min and asked us if we'd email him (and he gave us his private email) about Kayaking in Cinque Terra. So yeah, Rick and I have become good friends and soon I'll be writing in his next Travel guide. If you don't know Rick (Rick Steves to those who aren't his close friends), he's a real relaxed guy. Clarke set us all up to go play Ping Pong at his house during Christmas. Anyways, on a more serious note. I'm out of here before Florence internet eats up all of my money! YIKES!!!! Love you guys, and keep reading!!!!

I MET RICK STEVES!!!!

Ok, So I just thought I should let everyone know that tonight I met someone ridiculously famous. Not just I, might I add, but Clarke, Daniel, Andrew, and Luke as well. Yes, that's right, tonight while eating at the Blue Martini Pizzeria in Vernazza, Italy along the beaches of Cinque Terra, Rick Steves walked in and began editing his 2007 section on Cinque Terra. After he finished his email, we stopped and asked him for a picture... and we got one. Unfortunately, you'll have to wait two weeks to see it until I get home.

WE MET RICK STEVES, TRAVEL GURU EXTRORDINAIRE!!!!

Bound to Come Some Trouble

I won't be around for most of the next 2 weeks because I'll be traveling extensively in Italy and Greece. This is a weird statement to make, but it's an extremely trying time for me right now, so if all of you will keep me in your thoughts and prayers as I will be in a smalll group of guys going around those two countries. Thank you. Also, be mindful of my friends Clarke and Andrew as they are in a more difficult situation than the rest of us for the next 2 weeks.

Peace.

An English Sunset on the Thames

I'm going to miss England when I leave, but I am not gone yet.

Reflections on Traveling

      Well, soon I'll be leaving. I won't be in England anymore, and I won't be in America either. Instead, I'll be in Italy for a week or so, and then I'll be off to Athens, Greece. As much fun as this sounds, I really do wish I was going home with everyone else from my group who will be flying back to the states on Wednesday. It's not that I don't enjoy traveling, but when you're away from everything familiar to you for 4 1/2 months, it can be quite draining on you. Now, for some, they wouldn't have it any other way except to keep traveling this way and that way, and every which way, but not me. I mean, I don't travel for kicks or for fun, but I travel because there is more to life than me. I don't fully know what that means just yet, but I'm learning. Rene Descartes, a 17th century mathematician and philosopher, said that he learned just as much, if not more, about life in traveling for 3 years with the French Army during the 100 years war than he ever did reading books and studying in classrooms.
      Coming here for me hasn't been easy. I mean, the first day, I felt like I had arrived in C.S. Lewis' grey town from "The Great Divorce". You obviously can't fully understand that feeling just by reading this, but try to imagine leaving Texas, a land where the climate is extremely sunny and warm on most days and the people are equally warm and sunny, because Texans are very friendly, even if they aren't being honest with you. Then imagine getting on a plane and 24 hours later, you walk off of that plane into Gatwick Airport, a place that sweats not heat, but the cold, and outside it is dark and gloomy and everyone is pasty and seemingly impersonable. Imagine knowing you'll be stuck in this environment for 4 months. Needless to say, I had a rough start. I don't feel this way about England or the UK anymore, in fact I'm going to be sad when I leave this place, but the journey has not been easy.
      The most important thing I've begun learning from traveling in Europe has been this: That life is not about me. Donald Miller says that the greatest lie he ever contended with is that "life is a story about [me]". I can actually say that I'm learning what that means. Well I've got to go to lunch now, I'm going to meet with my English buddy Mark who goes to Trinity College here at Oxford. I'm getting sunday roast, and I'm hoping it'll be really good.

Mi Gente

I have to say that I'm pretty dang proud of my peoples. Now, I don't know what your politics are or how you feel about immigration laws or whatever, but I'm not here preaching politics to people about what you should or shouldn't believe. Anyways, this past monday on May 1st, millions of hispanics, along with some other immigrants to the states, united by word of mouth and protested the proposed reformation bill in the United States that attempts to charge with felonies those who immigrate illegally to the United States, as well as those who harbour illegal immigrants. They did not allow their children to go to school, they called in sick to work, and Personally, I don't feel it's right of the United States to punish these individuals so harshly. Cruel and Unusual Punishment, I think, is a big issue here. I think sometimes, however, that we can forget our heritage. After all, are we not all descendants of immigrants. My Grandmother on my mother's side is a Mexican Immigrant and my Great-Grandmother on my father's side is an Italian Immigrant. I won't forget either that somewhere along the lines the Worthington's came to the states from what we know of today as Leicestershire County, England and the Buchanans somewhere around Stirling and Drymen, Scotland migrated to the states as well. Can I account for all of their documentation? Probably not. I guarantee that not all of our families have migrated to the states legally or with proper documentation. I realize too that all it takes for someone to be legal is to be born in the United States. Can not those who conceive Americans somehow live the American Dream?

On the other hand, I realize that we are a Capitalist economy, but let us remember that Capitalism runs on "me and my money", looking out for number one and doing that by running out the other business by any means possible. Sadly, though, America can become so wrapped up in their own business that we aren't even counted on to lead the way for Equality and Fairtrade in the world, despite the fact that we are arguably the most powerful nation in the world. Did you know that when the Gleneagles Summit (G8 Summit) met in 2005, it was Britain who was counted on to rally the other 7 nations to commit .07% of their portion of the excess 5 billion dollars to fight poverty in 3rd world countries?

I think that America needs to be more socially minded, and I guarantee you that in visiting other countries, our outlook as a society is very internal. That just about kills me because being here in Europe, there's more resources available to me here that encourages my external focus, and I know that when I go home, I'm going to be driven to focus on me and my needs. I'm going to be cornered into shopping at Corporate Giants who, in many cases, have been found guilty of oppressing immigrants.

Immigration, like any other problem in the world, will not go away, and indeed it may be a problem. However, we have a call to love others in a selfless manner. We know too that selflessness is not a comfortable lifestyle, but a demanding one that does not find very much success or acheivements. Regardless of how comfortable it is, it is our call whether we say we are Christians, Muslims, Jews, whatever... It is everywhere among religions:

"Do to others as you would have them do to you." (Luke 6:30) -Jesus-

"Righteousness is this: that one should… give away wealth out of love for Him to the near of kin and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and the beggars and for the emancipation of the captives." (2.177) -The Koran-

"Thus sayeth the Lord: ‘Bring the homeless poor into the house, when you see the naked, cover him, then your light will break out like the dawn and your recovery will speedily spring fourth, then your Lord will be your rear guard." -Isaiah 58-

We cannot give up on the problems that exist around us, but we must seek as a community to work through our issues together. But we can never give up. In fact, if anything we must make it a point in our lives to continually give away. Give away to the needy and less fortunate than ourselves. At one time in each of our heritages, I can guarantee you someone in your blood line had struggles and someone gave them a leg up. Do not give up on those poorer and less fortunate, but give away to them.

Some Pictures for the Peoples

The Gallarus Oratory (from the inside) in the Dingle Peninsula, Republic of Ireland


C.S. Lewis' Dinner Table


Me teaching class at York Castle... obviously someone was out of their seat, so of course the kids deserved to be yelled at.


The Statue of Roman Emperor Constantine in York, who was crowned Emperor there in 306 AD. Upon his death, he would establish Christianity as the State Religion of Rome.


The Sun coming out over Whitby Pier


The Graveyard where St. Caedmon is buried... Also, behind it is the Coast of Whitby.


Whitby at Sunset...

More of those on my Facebook Pictures. More updates later, I need to get some homework done. For those of you in the states, 3 weeks and counting...