My Biggest Failure (and also My Greatest Lesson)

In my sophomore year of college, I planned to study abroad in Granada, Spain. I had everything prepared and ready, or so I thought. Suddenly, less than halfway through my semester abroad, my host country went into lockdown. My dream experience had quickly turned into a nightmare. After two of my flights were canceled the night before, I finally hopped on one of the last planes out of Spain. 

Back to America

Those two weeks of quarantine back home in the U.S. were filled with regrets, what-ifs, and disappointment. The trip that I had spent over a year planning for was now miles away. My scholarships were gone, my program shut down, and I was running out of college years. Even though there was no way anyone could have predicted this would happen, it still felt like a personal failure.

An Unforgettable Lesson

Now, two years later, I have a different perspective. I am in my last semester of college, getting ready to graduate, and my travel bug is more alive than ever. Life-saving vaccines have been created, countries are opening back up, and dim light is just beginning to peek through at the end of the Covid tunnel. 

Spain taught me that if there is one constant about life, it is its unpredictability. However, the idea of failing no longer scares me. After managing to escape getting stuck in a country 5,000 miles from home, I have run out of things to fear. I may not be ready for what comes next, but I plan to always make the most of it.