{"id":1078,"date":"2021-12-20T08:46:57","date_gmt":"2021-12-20T13:46:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/?page_id=1078"},"modified":"2021-12-22T10:31:38","modified_gmt":"2021-12-22T15:31:38","slug":"life-in-baja","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/2021-writing\/life-in-baja\/","title":{"rendered":"Life in Baja"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Rachel Arbor | Masters in Teaching in the Biological Sciences | Class of 2023
Education Abroad Program<\/strong>: Global Field Program: Project Dragonfly, Summer 2021<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Looking back at my field journal, I\u2019m bombarded with the same quote: \u201cI feel so inspired.\u201d I hope that sentiment resonates throughout this reflection, as it\u2019s my most powerful, guttural takeaway from this life-changing experience posing as a Masters Program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes when I close my eyes, I\u2019m transported back there and my senses instantly come alive: I feel the soft sand embracing my skin, the heat of the Mexican desert Sun, and my clothes, damp from the endless dips into the crystal-clear ocean. I see my feet dangling over the edge of my cot, watching the sunrise, trying to stay grounded and remind myself that this is real life. I hear love: among the birds, calling to each other in the morning light, the splash of the waves – sometimes gentle, sometimes fierce, and the joy in the laughter emulating from the kitchen. And oh, the smells from the kitchen! What a magical surprise to learn those meals would be some of the best, most delicious I\u2019ve ever had.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of my favorite moments were those when I first woke up, seeing my new nature family awake in their own way: paddle-boarding in the rainbow of the sunrise, reflecting on the ways we\u2019ve all changed and grown in this short time in our journals, and sometimes just sitting and soaking it all in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All that before the day even began! What I have yet to mention is just how teeming with life Baja is. The days were filled with exploring. What a life to lead! One day, we went out on the water and became slowly entertwined with the morning route of a pod of dolphins, dancing and jumping in numbers greater than at least 50. We continued our adventures and encountered blue-footed boobies, schools of hundreds of manta rays, and oh yeah – swam alongside gentle and giant juvenile Whale Sharks. Suffice it to say, these life-long memories continue to fill me with awe. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The nights seemed to teem with somehow more life! From snorkeling with octopus and bioluminescence (straight out of the Harry Potter universe) to night hiking with tarantulas and \u201chunting\u201d for scorpions with black lights, I have never felt more entrenched in our natural world. And what a world it is!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being in this program, connecting with so many amazing people and organizations across the globe – it\u2019s an easy reminder that we truly are making a difference. That this matters. I am so proud and grateful to be a Project Dragonfly student – not just for these memories, but also for the way it challenges me to think differently and more deeply. Don\u2019t even get me started on the Aventureros. Feeling the wonder in my eyes and seeing it reflected in those of the amazing local kids – who took it upon themselves to make their environment that much greener through research and trash removal on local beaches – VSFS is doing it right. I feel so lucky to be in this program and learn from my new family of fellow students – knowing that we\u2019ve all come together, each from our own professions with our own unique perspectives – through our shared love and wonder of the world around us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we got back to the States and began inevitably filling out social media accounts with memories from our shared life-changing experiences, VSFS asked us to use the hashtag \u201c#bajam\u00e1gica\u201d – what a gift it is to have a simple phrase that could so eloquently capture the feelings of being there! Taking a moment to reflect on these experiences is yet another gift. It brings me joy just to write this and smile at Baja Rachel who\u2019s made her way into a new life, guided by her experiences in this one, short, life-changing trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My Ba-jaiku<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hearts transform as a
spiritual abduction
moves this Baja fam<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Rachel Arbor | Masters in Teaching in the Biological Sciences | Class of 2023Education Abroad Program: Global Field Program: Project Dragonfly, Summer 2021 Looking back at my field journal, I\u2019m bombarded with the same quote: \u201cI feel so inspired.\u201d I hope that sentiment resonates throughout this reflection, as it\u2019s my most powerful, guttural takeaway […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"parent":571,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1078","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1078"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1078\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/571"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.miamioh.edu\/international-education-week-contest\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}