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I'm leaving the Trek. Yep, my time has come. I decided to leave to US Trek for a whole bunch of reasons. There were a lot of reasons for me to stay, though. These past four months I have been living an ideal life, meeting new people and learning through experience. It has been a gift. I guess the biggest reason I came home to Berkeley is the gravitational pull of my mother. She is quite big - in spirit that is. My whole family really has been waiting at home patiently as I traveled around the United States for four months, just as they waited while I traveled around Asia for a year before that. Also, there are my friends who are all about to graduate from college. I really felt torn between my friends at home and the great people I met through the Odyssey. These guys are all about to begin their careers, their independent lives, and I suppose I wanted to see a bit of them before we cross that final line into adulthood. On top of all this is Rugby, the sport I play in college. It turns out my years of eligibility run out if I am in school or not. So this could be my last chance to win a national championship. Small potatoes compared to the Odyssey, but still a personal aspiration I feel real lucky. I mean, this is the start of something with the potential to change the face of education and the world along with it. The Odyssey is a beautiful dream come true, and through the rapid interconnection of the web that dream is coming to life the world over. This may be the end of my career as a US Trekker, but the Odyssey and the US Trek will continue. I hope that my short time on the Trek made America a little more complex for you. America, or really everything in life, is not black and white. There are so many perspectives, so many stories to be told, and I only got to touch on the inky-dinkiest little handful of them. I would like to thank the dozens of people who opened up their homes to me while I was traveling. If I learned one thing on this trip it is that America is full of generous, good people, despite the garbage on Jerry Springer. Also, I would like to extend a short-term goodbye to my talented and fabulous fellow trekkers. I am sure we will run into each other with the serendipity that pervades the Odyssey. Hello to Jenn my replacement. I met her at Café Strada in Berkeley; she has a heart of gold. And a giant hug to Jeff, Genesis and the crew at the Odyssey. Doggone it, the work you do is awesome; I have got nothing but love for these guys. Goodbye kiddos! Good luck on your history tests, and never stop asking questions. Peace,
Please email me at:
teddy@ustrek.org
Stephanie - Sweet sugar's evil, mean streak |
