Originally, I intended to get to this assignment as soon as possible once I arrived back in College Station, however, when I finally found the time to collect my thoughts, I couldn’t bring myself to sit down and do it. This task, though simple, seemed too daunting, and I didn’t believe that I could effectively describe the impact of the course and how it changed my opinions and perspectives. I tried to think of specific events to refer to stimulate a decent essay, yet, as I reflected back, my mind was still too flooded with all the information from the excursions and events in the program. Even now, my thoughts remain jumbled, and I find myself unable to accurately recall a defining moment.
Nevertheless, amidst all of my jumbled thoughts and memories, I noticed a few general themes that seem to grab my attention and memories which reflect the impact that the course had on my education and development. I began the course and trip with expectations of what I was going to learn, see, and do, but the trip far exceeded my expectations providing more of a cultural context for my personal experiences and opinions.
From the start, my expectations in the course began to change with our first day of lecture as I found myself captivated by the German culture and history. I had expected that my attention and interests would be much more focused in the medicine and its history, but I found the different regions, religions, alliances, and struggles of the individual peoples that now compose Germany captivated me more. The constant conflicts between the German people over faith, land, and power seemed to flow like a well rehearsed story, and, when we arrived in Germany, I reveled in the opportunity to see the all the historical landmarks and geographical backdrops on which the story had played out. The beautiful cathedrals, architecture, and monuments stood as constant reminders of a history which influenced the opinions of the people we were meeting and their attitudes towards society, government, history, and religion.
In these historical influence and cultural environment, the history of medicine we were learning about took a side note to a much larger cultural picture which I had lost sight of in my studies at home. For some in our group, this cultural and historical perspective may have been expected, and they may notice its underlining influences every day in our culture. However, as an engineer, this excursion served as an eye opener. For the first time in a while, I had the opportunity to look around and really observe the world taking my eyes away from a disciplined, focused workload of an engineer to mark something new and different. Furthermore, I really enjoyed the opportunity to observe medicine, history, and culture without the need to memorize facts, calculate results, or define specific conclusions, and I savored the chance to deviate from the engineering course focus and mindset required by my classes at A&M.
With our return to campus, this wider outlook provided by our course in Germany stuck with me and forced me to at times step back and take more notice of the global and cultural influences around me. Now, I no longer feel as absorbed by the world of engineering and medicine as I once did, and I have become a more rounded person because of it. Moreover, this new found perspective provides me with a nice breathe of fresh air offering me spare moments and thoughts away from numbers and science.
That being said, I am glad that I had the opportunity to meet everyone who went on the trip. I didn’t know what to expect at the start, but I enjoyed our time together in Germany. So, thanks everyone. You all helped to make the trip memorable.
Lastly, since I know that I read some of the last blogs from the summer group before us, a few comments for anyone who makes the trip in the summer or winter: 1) Have fun. Germany is a blast, and it will be one of the coolest experiences ever. 2) If you go in the winter, listen to what Dr. Wasser says about clothes because it is COLD. And finally, 3) if you have an Aggie ring, wear it, but make sure it fits. Trust me, nearly losing a $700 investment is not fun and is really quite depressing… actually losing it though would be even worse.
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