Keagan’s World

I’m the last one standing.

Don’t you just love these hyper-dramatic one-liners I rip off to start every post? I really should have done theater growing up cause I would be an absolute stud. Maybe I’ll start my engineer-to-business man-to-actor arc after this trip.

Kidding. Unless…

Anyways back to the scene. I am officially the last person left in my Spanish school that was there when I started over a month ago. And more importantly, my closest friends over the last month all left within the last two weeks.

Just like that, everyone is gone.

It felt all so unceremonious with a bunch of quick “Chau, amigos” and maybe a quick embrace before exiting curtain right. Not quite an Irish goodbye but something that feels disproportionate to the good times y’all shared.

^{*Real action shot of a goodbye*}

But if I’m being honest I kinda prefer it that way.

I’ve l always operated this way; leaving for college, leaving from college, leaving for Argentina I never did the whole dramatic goodbye with tear shedding. So maybe you’re thinking “hey Keagan you only knew these people for at MOST a month…” But remember like I said before relationships are built at light speed when you’re traveling. If in a few hours you can become “besties” (you know like the fake version people just say for everyone they know), over the course of a month you could be someone’s best man in their wedding for the following month.

Yeah okay, again, dramatic. But point stands.

Now maybe you’re thinking I just sound like a heartless asshole right now, which… fair. But it’s really not like that. I care so so much for the people in my life because, as I have built this travel identity on, the people are what matter more than anything. To my friends and family both home and abroad I love y’all.

So why is it so nonchalant then?

I think it comes down to three things:
1. Acceptance
2. Perspective
3. Opportunity

Acceptance
The acceptance that changes are a part of life both for good and bad. You can’t keep everything you love forever and that goes for everything.

Perspective
The perspective that true relationships don’t crumble with distance and time. That doesn’t mean you haven’t to be constantly talking to someone or texting them. It just means that no matter how much time passes, you could grab a beer with them at a bar 2 years down the road and laugh like it was yesterday.

Opportunity
The opportunity to grow, learn, and explore. You can’t sit back in the comfort of what you know anymore so the only thing you can do is continue putting yourself out there. And that’s a beautiful thing.

So today marks a new chapter of acceptance, perspective, and opportunity. I miss my friends but I can’t let that keep me from making Phase 2 just as good as Phase 1.

And what better way to have done that than going to Rio de Janeiro for the world’s biggest party: Carnaval 👀