Recently a student expressed to me that she has been feeling bewildered as to why she is at university. I told her I sympathized: I always hated school. Please don’t misunderstand me. I love teaching, but I hated being a student. I love learning, but I hate studying. I struggled to get through both high school and university. I didn’t struggle because I didn’t understand the material; I struggled because I didn’t know why I was doing it. It was hard for me because I fundamentally understood the purpose of university – a good job, a comfortable life. I also wanted to please my parents and finish university, but I couldn’t understand why I couldn’t have those things without a degree. About halfway through university I travelled to Europe, and by the time I returned my feeling about school had shifted from bewilderment to motivation. My life today is a direct result of that trip to Europe.

I left for Europe in the fall. I had a plan to be gone about a month and then I would return to Seattle and work. I had a youth hostel card, a Eurail Pass, some money, and a schedule. Within a week, my schedule was in the garbage. I was thrilled by the adventure and excitement of everything involved with travelling. I made friends wherever I went. I met people from different countries and backgrounds whose personal stories seemed exotic to me. Their world view challenged mine, and I was fascinated. I went to places that I had never heard of before. I was mugged in Yugoslavia, I was followed by government agents in Bulgaria, and I accidentally stole money from a man in Turkey. It was thrilling!

I also saw the great sights of Europe. I went to the Louvre and the Rodin Museums in Paris, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Acropolis in Athens, the library at Ephesus in Turkey, and so many more places I can’t begin to describe everything. I developed an appreciation for great art and great architecture, both ancient and modern. But to be honest once you have seen ten or twenty great, big, old cathedrals, well, they begin to look a lot alike. They are just old buildings. The museums were interesting, but how many great works of art can one person see? No, I got bored. Fortunately, I found the people I met to be a cornucopia of interesting stories and ideas. My world view was challenged by seeing my world (the United States of America) through the eyes of Europeans. I grew to appreciate that the world was far larger than I had thought.

In addition to realizing that I loved encountering different places, different ideas, and different ways of thinking, I was personally challenged. After leaving behind my original plan, I had to figure out a new plan – my own plan. I had to figure out how to make what I wanted to happen, happen. I had to make friends. It is lonely travelling alone. It isn’t always easy to make friends. I had to watch out for myself and stay safe. I had a few brushes with danger that I look back on and wonder how it was that I didn’t get seriously hurt. But I managed. I returned home safe and sound. I grew into myself in a way that only experience can make happen. Lectures and books are wonderful, but they can’t give the same knowledge and understanding that experience can. I gained confidence in myself that has enabled me to pursue my interests throughout my life without hesitation.

That fateful trip to Europe gave me insight into how much there was to see in the world. I learned to appreciate discovering how other people felt about the same places and situations as I was seeing. It showed me that the better I understood the world at large, the better I would understand my smaller world. More importantly, I seemed to be able to make myself comfortable in a foreign situation. I find that even today I am rarely bored. I often tell my friends in the United States that it is a more interesting life when you cannot read the cereal box than it is to go to the same supermarket and buy the same cereal without ever looking at it. I enjoy the cultural differences, and part of my self confidence is a result of figuring out how to balance who I am with what another culture expects me to be. It is fun!

Upon returning to the United States, I hadn’t exactly figured out what I wanted to do with my life. But I had one clear goal – I would travel! Whatever career I chose would include experiencing different cultures and meeting many different people. Here is the answer to my student’s question. I knew that I couldn’t get an interesting job overseas without a university diploma. So, I became motivated. I hunkered down and studied and graduated and got a job teaching English in Japan. At that time I didn’t think that teaching was my calling; I just wanted to experience Japan. I did, and I loved it! I loved both living overseas and teaching. My dream was both taking shape and coming true at the same time.

I appreciate the education that I have. I really do. All of the facts, figures, books and reports contributed to making me a better, more critical thinker. I was forced to learn to communicate ideas and persuade other people in debates. But none of it had any meaning until I found my own reason for finishing school. I hope that each student appreciates the education they get at Keimyung University. Understand that your professors are trying to give you knowledge that will help you not just find a job but help you become better people. But we do not possess all the answers. Some answers you have to go out and get on your own. You may not need to travel in Europe, or get mugged to find it, but you need to be open to the other experiences that life has to offer so that you can find your own motivation.