Whether I have become a better person is not for me to judge, but I believe I have grown more creative, fitter and more caring.
Some of the activities I found myself involved in were a complete disaster but they have taught me great deal about myself, my strengths and weaknesses. For instance, I now know with absolute certainty that I won't ever be able to play the piano. But I have tried, and without this attempt I would not have reached that eye-opening conclusion.
On the other hand, I have realised that my musical self was not hopeless as I have learnt to strum a ukulele.
My other proud creative achievements would include a bunch of new skills like learning Czech, Turkish, developing my own photos, fixing old cameras, editing sports videos and mastering a bunch of delicious recipes. As an aspiring linguist, I admit being biased but I am nonetheless of the opinion that languages offer the best opportunities to develop perseverance and commitment.
Service, as always, can be the biggest challenge. My initial visits to orphanages were very emotional and I felt terribly uncomfortable. To make things incredibly more challenging, the first institution I visited was an orphanage for victims of agent orange, children born with deformities, abandoned by their parents for this very reason. Witnessing these health issues that still plague so many lives years after the end of the Vietnam war does make you reflect on the cruelty of war and its lack of ethics. I could barely stomach some of the things I saw at the orphanage in these early days. With time, I became less self-conscious and learnt to see beyond deformed bodies and join the games the children wanted me to participate in.
Being sporty does not mean that there aren't any challenges left to achieve. It is actually the opposite and you end up pushing your limits further and further. In 2010, I had the crazy initiative of cycling across Cambodia and Laos. I didn't own a bicycle, nor did I know anything about them, how to fix them or tune them up. Six months later, my wife and I entered Luang Prabang in the North of Laos, after a 2500km ride.This wasn't achieved by magic but was the result of thorough planning, testing the equipment, reading forums, watching Youtube tutorials, and fitness training. Strong from this experience, this crazy idea became a habit and we later cycled the length of Vietnam, the South of Thailand, the Indian state of Kerala and toured the island of Sri Lanka.
A month ago, I put on my CAS student cap again after registering for a triathlon. To be perfectly honest, I had been invited to the challenge a month prior to that, but had dismissed the possibility of participating as I knew very well that I could not realistically complete the 650m swim in open water. The small CAS voice inside my head talked me into facing the challenge. For four weeks, two to three times a week, I could be seen in the pool training for it. On triathlon day, I can't really say that the swim was easy, on the contrary, but I entered the water with the confidence I did not have a few weeks ago. The sense of achievement was intense and crossing the finish line was quite ecstatic.
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