What happened over there?

What happened over there? This is the question I expect to receive many times in the coming weeks, months, and even years. However, it is also the question I expect to never be able to answer. What happened over there? I don't know what to answer or how to answer. No words, pictures, or videos can convey what happened over there. Sure, a revolution seems to be an obvious answer but there's so much more. How? Why? These are questions for historians and scholars so perhaps the better question is "What happened over there, to you?" Again, a question I expect to never be able to fully answer. As I begin to file the pictures and feelings of Egypt away in the recesses of my memory I am also attempting to answer that one question that can't be answered, "What happened over there?"

One week ago yesterday I was evacuated from Alexandria, Egypt with 11 other students and our program director. I eventually made it back to the US and have spent my time visiting the people I care about, my friends and my family. I imagine it will take me some time to fully digest and reflect on my time in Egypt. It's something I never hope to experience again. At the same time, it puts a lot of perspective on life here in the US. Many of the things we take for granted, like being able to call or email loved ones, can represent a daily battle in the confines of such an oppressive state. I definitely have a new appreciation for the communication aspects of the internet and the ability to pick up the phone and talk to loved ones.

I've not only received a new perspective on life in the US but life in general as well. In my room in Cincinnati I had a poster on the wall that said "Live like you'll die today but dream like you'll live forever." I've always thought it was a nice saying and something to work towards but never in my wildest dreams did I think that particular saying would hit home so hard. That saying filled my mind as I was confronted with the most dangerous and terrifying times of my life. Clearly, such an experience leaves a mark. Some changes may be obvious, others more subtle, and still others that may not be discovered for some time. I certainly learned a lot about myself and my ability to survive under the pressure of extreme circumstances. Nothing like a revolution to force one to grow up. One thing is clear though, I'm never going to take tomorrow for granted again.

While my sleep is no longer interrupted by gunfire and shouting, neither are my days spent with the 11 students, our program director, and the Egyptian resident directors I had grown so close to. I knew these people for 2 weeks but the experiences we shared bonded us in ways far beyond a 2 week friendship. 12 random students thrown into a situation full of adversity, relying on each other during some of the most trying times of our lives. I am so proud to call these people my friends and wish them all the best in whatever they choose to do with their lives. We share something many people will never understand.

There is definitely a special place carved in my heart for the Egyptian people, especially our Egyptian resident directors. I can never repay them for their caring and their courage. Arming themselves to protect their neighborhoods, their families, and a couple of American students they knew nothing about inspires me to live a better life and fills me with human pride. I learned more about compassion and caring from the Egyptian people than I can ever measure. At the lowest and most vulnerable moment of my life, I was comforted by the heart of a nation yearning for freedom. While we may think we are all very different, in our religions, our beliefs, our jobs, etc, there is far more that connects and unites us than divides us. Basic human instincts for freedom, justice, and liberty have no national boundaries and obey no government. The Egyptian people have realized their power and thrown off the yolk of fear to demand justice, freedom, and democracy.

What is clear is that in the week and a half I spent in Egypt I learned more about the Egyptian people and their culture than I would have learned in a normal semester abroad. I did all of the tourist things, visited the pyramids, the sphinx, and toured around town in a big tour bus but I also did things most tourists have nightmares about. I traveled to Egypt and back again like so many others before me but words can never describe my experience during this unique time in history. I went to Egypt expecting to stay for 5 months and instead I returned in less than 2 weeks with a little less clothing, a few souvenirs, and a lifetime worth of memories.