I recently had the opportunity to help out a friend who is working on completing her master's in graphic design. She put together a magazine called, "Unconventional". A collection of stories, advice and experiences from American volleyball player's who have played all over the world.
Not only was it a great way to reflect on how my volleyball abroad experiences have impacted my life, it was also a joy to read the other girl's stories, many of whom my path has crossed with over the past seven years.
Pretty sure this should be passed out to all who are looking at the possibility of playing overseas.
Thanks for including me Anna! I would give you an A+ and a job! :)
You can view the full magazine here:
And here is my anything but ordinary, 'Unconventional' story:
The Journey Around the World that has Changed My Life
The past six years, going on seven, I have spent living thousands of miles away from my American hometown and family in Colorado. When I reflect back on what I have done, the places I’ve been, the people I’ve met and those who have become family, it’s hard to put into words how I have transformed as a person.
Whenever people ask me if I would recommend playing volleyball overseas, I never hesitate to say, “YES! Do it. You have to.” Even if it’s just for a year, do it. It is worth it. As a human, it should almost be your duty to live in another country for a year or at least travel somewhere completely new and different every few years.
Travel opens your eyes and your heart to the diversity that is out in our big world. It rips us from our comfort zones and forces us to take a hard look at not only the way other people live but the way you live individually as well.
When you see other people living their lives, questions start to take shape that never would have formed living in the confines of your comfort zone at home.
I was fortunate enough to be given the means to embark on my overseas journey through volleyball. I went on my first Europe trip when I was playing at Texas A&M. We went on our two week tour with Bring It Promotions. It was responsible for sparking my wanderlust bug. But if I’m honest with myself, at that time, I just knew I wanted to keep playing volleyball after college. And that meant going to Europe, so it’s what I did.
It wasn’t until after living abroad for awhile, when I started to become obsessed with the process. It wasn’t, and isn’t, as glamorous as everyone may think (per usual social media world these days). There are a lot of dark days, tough situations, homesickness and challenges that come with living in a foreign place. Something I do not hesitate to leave out when giving advice on taking the adventure on.
But it’s the challenges of living a life so unfamiliar to yourself that gives back the most reward. You start to see the beauty of what travel embodies when you’re able to find parts of yourself in other people that you initially viewed as completely different from yourself. Because in the end, we are all cut from the same cloth in some way shape or form and it takes travel for us to make these connections.
I started out as a volleyball player hopscotching the globe through playing; half of a year in Ponce, Puerto Rico, two years in Maribor, Slovenia, two years in Hamburg, Germany, half of a year in the Philippines and another year and a half in Maribor, Slovenia. I am closing in on 30 countries visited around the world through my own travels, being a tour guide and playing.
Somewhere in the middle of all of this, I found my home away from home in Maribor, Slovenia. Where I reside now, my first year living abroad without playing volleyball. Now I help out in the club I played for and I am a full time tour guide for Bring It Promotions; running tours around Europe, hoping to inspire and encourage others to take the risk I did years ago.
Exposure to the world has given me some of my closest friends and relationships, made me appreciate where I come from and cherish my family more than ever. It’s given me experiences I won’t be able to unpack when I go home to show off on the mantel. The lessons I have learned will simply reside in the root of my actions of how I choose to live the rest of my life, wherever that may be.
When you go home, you can’t really explain what you’ve gone through as a person. You can only encourage those around you to travel so they can also feel the change and embrace the sense of understanding our world desperately needs; appreciation of other cultures and lifestyles.
After you’ve experienced more of the world, something happens internally where you start viewing everything around you differently. Food, mannerisms, day to day tasks, work, lifestyles, relationships. By comparing and contrasting what you’ve known your entire life with your new foreign observations, you start making adjustments, judge people less and appreciate life more.
Volleyball gave me the mode of transportation to make these changes, and I will always be appreciative to the sport, the clubs I’ve played in, the people that have been apart of my journey along the way and the countries that have changed my soul.
