Community can be defined in many different ways. Over the years the definition has changed and grown for me personally. I have come to find that the people and places that support me and help me to grow in different aspects of my life make up my communities. Here in Australia I have found communities in likely and unlikely places.
The first community, who I have grown to know and love, is my house and the people that I live with. I live on campus in what is known as the Burwood Student Village. I live with nine different people, but luckily we each have our own room! Of the nine people, five are Australian, one is from New Zealand, one is from Hong Kong, one is from Malaysia, and the last one is from New York. We have what we call ‘family dinners’ once a week (as shown in the photo above) and it is a great time to catch up and hang out. I have learned so much from these people about life and culture in their hometowns and I love them all very much. They can be crazy and sometimes even annoying (as anyone that you spend a lot of your time with can be), but this is the community that I can come home to after a long day and I know that at the end of the day (no pun intended) they will always be there for me.
Although living in a foreign country can be new and exciting, I have found that cultures can often clash and this can sometimes be a very isolating feeling. I joined a group called DSAC or Deakin Study Abroad Club. This is a group devoted to the students at Deakin who are studying abroad and is run by Australian students who have studied abroad in other countries. This group organizes fun events, barbeques, movies nights, and even times to just chat and discuss our various study abroad experiences (as shown in the photo above). Because studying abroad can have it’s ups and downs, it is amazing to have this community to go to when I am feeling down and this has encouraged me to stay involved and make the most of my study abroad experience.
At home the GW Ultimate Frisbee team made up a large part of my identity and communities. When I came to Deakin I worried that if I tried to join the Frisbee team the community would be different and I wouldn’t have that solid friend base that I had found in DC. Playing sports is something that has always been very important to me, so when I arrived at Deakin I decided to join the team. Even though the community is very different from my Frisbee team back home, I have grown to truly know and love the people on the Deakin team. Ultimate Frisbee is a lot less developed as a sport here in Australia so my input and help on the team has been greatly appreciated and I have found that playing, developing and learning with this team has been an incredible experience. I play in a league with the team every Monday night (as shown above) and I am even traveling to Sydney next week to with the team to compete in the ‘Australian Uni Games’ also known as ‘AUGs’. Although the community is different from home it has helped to shape me as an athlete and a leader.
A huge part of my study abroad experience has been being able to travel. People say that when you go abroad you will catch the ‘travel bug’ and I have found that to be more than true. Traveling is incredible, enlightening, and generally good for the soul, but it can sometimes be tiring and overwhelming so it is good to travel with people who can be there for you. I have done a lot of my traveling with these three people (pictured above): Molly, Anna, and John. They are all American and have been bit by the ‘travel bug’ just as much as me. Having people to travel with has helped to keep me from getting bogged down in the work and encouraged me to continue to explore and continue to make the most of my abroad experience.
The last community I’ve found here in Australia has been myself in the city. This may seem a bit odd, but I have found a lot of peace in exploring the city of Melbourne alone. I consider this one of my communities because exploring the city has truly helped shape me and continued to help me to grow and develop throughout my abroad experience. On my free days, which can often seem rare, I like to tram into the city (which takes around an hour), and spend the day exploring. I’ve discovered random street (like shown above), museums, statues, restaurants, and more. Most importantly, I’ve had time to reflect on my experience abroad, which is something that has truly helped me to not let the hard days get me down.
Although my abroad experience, like many others, is far from perfect, I am having the time of my life. I have surrounded myself with people and places that have continued to help me to grow, learn, explore, meditate, party, travel, and so much more and I couldn’t ask for anything more.