Final week, final thoughts

Count the chocolate bars I brought back.

On Monday we finished up our last History of Medicine lecture with Dr. Wasser and it was really bittersweet. On one hand I am so ready to be home and see my family and get some rest, but on the other hand I'll miss learning from Dr. Wasser and I will miss the charms and depth of Europe. I'll miss the cafes lining the cobblestone sidewalks and the long meals that I've shared with friends. Any time I would grab a coffee or a meal with anyone, especially this past weekend, it would last a minimum of 2 hours. European meals are full of meaningful and enjoyable conversations- with topics ranging from our families and dogs to the treatment of immigrants to the moral topics involved in varying healthcare systems around the world.

I'm sure that just being in Europe itself changes you, but I didn't imagine the way that I was going to be transformed and reshaped by this program in particular. It's hard to express, but when you see me and you'll just see it.

In Berlin we were able to break up into four groups for a "My Berlin Day" experience. The groups either spent the day with an architect, a beekeeper, a neuro-physiologist, or a Syrian refugee. At the end of the day we all shared our experiences in a presentation. Everyone had such a unique experience seeing the city with a new set of eyes, but I feel that I was extra blessed to have the Berlin day that I did.

The East Side Gallery

My group spent the day with a Syrian refugee named Muhammad. It opened my eyes to see the world as a much  smaller place. We started out by walking to the Ministry of Ministries (modern day Ministry of Finance building) where he talked about the protests in the 1950s. It was horrifying to hear how the citizens of East Berlin had no voice, and when they did try to speak up peacefully they would be met with tanks and guns. But then to put us in perspective he paralleled to how this exact same atmosphere plagued the Syrian nation with similar protests in the 80s. The people had no way to even organize a resistance movement, because not unlike the S.S. spies in Germany, the Syrian government had (& still has) agents reporting any sort of suspicious activity. That struck me because we hear about Germany and Berlin in school when growing up and think of it as something that happened years and years ago and now we have moved on into better times, but countries like Syria are still living in violence and oppression. This isn't the past, this is reality. The world we live in is small, universal, and never perfect. I wish schools conveyed that better in history classes.

Former SS. Building

Next we moved onto a spot near the East Side Gallery (the Berlin wall portion that artists paint), near where an S.S. building HQ used to be. He told us about the S.S. officers and their methods to obtain complete control over the people. Then again, he mentioned how this impacted his own home. We all know about the Nuremberg Trials after the war, but what about the men who escaped before they were captured? One in particular, a very influential S.S. officer did flee, and he eventually was hired by the Syrian government to help implement more effective ways to control the nation. Muhammad didn't know why the government had so many forms of torture with German names until he moved here. What a world we live in.

Delicious Syrian cuisine.

One of the last stops before lunch was at Check Point Charlie. He stopped us there because it reminded him of the infinite number of check points back home. Then he began to tell us his journey to a life in Berlin. He was a student in college and received orders to join the military. At this age every male either joins the Syrian army, the resistance, ISIS, or they flee. The story of his journey really made us think about how many Texans look at immigrants, and how we now will look at them. I've always wanted to implement better ways to care for the refugees coming into our nation- language classes, more shelters, and keeping families together. However, this experience has made it more personal, more real, and opened my eyes to the suffering of the individual. Next time you think about immigrants, think about their individual sacrifice with more compassion.

The Charite Hospital, Berlin

The rest of our time spent in Berlin consisted of visiting the Charité and Sachsenhausen. The Charité is a medical complex built in 1710 to treat the anticipated plague patients, however the plague never reached Berlin and so the mission of the hospital changed. They offered free treatment for the poor, pregnant prostitutes, and the mentally ill. It was a gorgeous campus, and if I spoke German I would love to eventually practice medicine there. Our main focus was a visit to the museum and we had a blast hearing stories on previous cases from our tour guide, Tiny Tom. I really liked how we got to spend some free time in the specimen room. They had jars of every organ in the body organized by system and each with a healthy example to compare with the numerous malformations and illnesses. No, I won't gross you out with pictures & I didn't take any out of respect. (google it if you're interested). It blows my mind that even back in the 1700s they had successful ways to preserve wet and dry specimens that still look perfect today.

Farewell dinner. Not featured- Belly Dancing

Our last night we spent at a Lebanese restaurant where we reminisced on our adventures and misadventures. At the end of our meal we had a special visit from a belly dancer which was absolutely hysterical and unexpected. She danced solo in the beginning but then she started choosing victims to join in. I can proudly say that I went second and may even be considering joining the Texas A&M Belly Dancing Association for fun. But I won't.

The Brothers Grimm fountain, Berlin

Sitting at the airport looking through some of the pictures on my 7 hour layover (one of many), I can honestly say I'm just about in tears watching the beautiful friendships that have developed, each picture capturing even the littlest moments. One in particular, my roommate, who has suffered the most in terms of having to spend time with me and listening to my alarm go off every morning (20 times). God bless this girl who has woken me up every day of this program. Here's to all of the delirious, silly, funny, annoyed, lost, meaningful, "It's just so warm, and I'm just so tired" -host mom, musical, educational, and beautiful moments. Girl, I could not be more thankful for your presence in my life.
And here's to the many other friendships that I now treasure from this summer abroad. Thank you for the laughs, for the misadventures, for the deep conversations, for getting lost with me, enjoying the little things, and for being genuine people. The most wonderful thing about this program is that we are all Aggies, and I will get to see all of you soon.

Mi compañera de cuarto de Bonn

The world is attainable. Your goals are reachable. Your bucket list is do-able. Your dreams are reality. Be grateful for your own story and for those around you. Don't look at others wishing you could be/do/see whatever it is, and just do it. The pen is in your hands. So get out of your own way and begin