…but a sick person has only one” – Indian proverb Note: This took place early in the week of July 1. I've been back up and running since then! Coming down with a fever after a busy weekend wasn’t particularly fun, though fortunately the timing worked out alright with our travel schedule (in Chennai now). As I lay in bed, staring aimlessly around the hotel room for most of the day, I had two profound realizations. The first was that the decorative grate on the window was missing a small piece, an observation that would never have happened without hours of leisure time in my unfortunate state. The second was a deeper questioning caused by this pause in the whirlwind of the past two weeks—a time that has sped by faster than an Indian auto on an open stretch of road. Staring at the ceiling, doing absolutely nothing, the absurdity of this whole situation hit me. What am I doing? I’m laying here in a bed in Chennai, India. But really, I have no idea where I am. I drowsily hopped into a plane from Bangalore yesterday, then a car, then this hotel and haven’t left since. And I’m here in India why? Oh yeah, to talk to auto rickshaw drivers. Just to talk to them? What value will my summer produce for the company? And the whole reason I’m laying here able to receive anything I could ever imagine wanting is because of a 2x3 inch plastic card that contains an essentially unlimited store of money from some wealthy donor? What’s going on? What am I accomplishing? When my brain deemed doing nothing to once again be boring, I scrolled though Instagram. Everyone else’s life seemed exciting: 21st birthdays, honeymoons, vacations, dream internships. But wait, I thought, that’s probably what everyone else thinks when I post something about India. It’s always easier to wish for other people’s Instagram lives than their internal lives. And even amid these doubts, I had plenty reason to smile. I know that this experience is what I signed up for, that I spoke energetically about how India would grow me as a person from my Santa Clara comforts, that all the difficult moments of this year have been important parts of the journey. Already in 15 short days, India has stretched and grown me to be a more observant, flexible and empathetic person. Drivers, employees and everyone I’ve met has been so happy to share their life and culture with me. This summer is truly a gift, and has already been so fun and meaningful. I got hungry and remembered that room service was well within my power. I ordered chicken nuggets, veggie spring rolls and watermelon juice. A few days later, I was back up and running, embracing the Chennai heat. As the quote in the title suggests, nothing helps you appreciate the vitality of being healthy like the monotony of being sick.
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