Submitted by Samantha Jennings the 2024 Spring program in Copenhagen, Denmark…
The theme of this week’s blog entry is challenging and overcoming personal limits. As this is unfortunately the final week of my study abroad program in Copenhagen, Denmark, I think that this theme is very fitting for reflecting on all of the new experiences that I have had these past few months. On Sunday, I had the pleasure of acting as a cheerleader for my roommate and dear friend, Joe, as he participated in the Copenhagen Marathon. Joe absolutely loves to run. It is a passion and a hobby of his that he takes part in almost every day. However, Joe has never run a marathon before nor had he been training for this type of long distance trek. Nonetheless, Joe decided that there was no better way to celebrate his time in Copenhagen than to challenge himself farther than ever before and commit to running the marathon. He was nervous and excited. He had only ever run the distance of a half marathon before and was unsure of what more he could expect from this race. Joe showed up to the race on Sunday with mine and my roommate Abby’s support. When he left us for the starting post, Abby and I felt sad that he was leaving us and unsure of how the race would go for him, we knew that he would enjoy it but we were a tad bit worried about him pulling through to the finish line. Joe started off strong, for the first 25 km he kept a pace of 5.45 km/min. We were able to wave to him and cheer as he passed us along the 14 km mark. He seemed focused and determined. Although we were not able to see him during the longer stretch of the marathon, from about 23 km to 38 km, we were tracking him on the route and recording his pace. As he approached the distance of a half marathon, he began to slow down some. He was tired and hurting but he knew that stopping would only make it worse, after all he had a race to run. Joe told us afterwards that in this moment, the pain didn’t matter, this battle was one that he was fighting in his mind. We watched as Joe kept a slower, but steady pace until the 42 km. Abby and I wanted to watch him cross the finish line, so we met him around the 42 km mark. We were so proud of him we screamed so loud to try and capture his attention. When he looked at us, we could see all of the pain and tiredness flash across his face…but he was still running. Joe crossed the finish line after 4 hours and 12 minutes of nonstop running. We met him in the medical tent after the run. He was shivering and hungry but so incredibly proud of himself. After a few minutes of recovery he could not stop talking about all of the classmates and friends that he saw during the race who came to support him. This marathon was probably one of the hardest things that Joe has ever done yet he finished it with a pained smile on his face. Now that I have had the opportunity to reflect on the events of this weekend, I could not be more proud of Joe and the rest of my study abroad community for challenging themselves in new ways this semester. Studying abroad is a lot like running a marathon. In the beginning, we are all excited and nervous to embark on a new journey. We look forward to meeting new people and living in another country. At first, we find that life in other places is not that different from our own and we make ourselves a new home. However, once the honeymoon period expires, we find ourselves overwhelmed with school, life, and the unexpected. Oftentimes we feel like there is nowhere to turn and no escape, but we can see our friends and family in the distance supporting us, so we keep on running. Despite the pain and the stress, we keep pushing ourselves to make the most of our experiences because we know that there are people who love us and want to see us succeed. Although we think about giving up because of this fear and stress, we continue on to the finish line no matter what it takes. The end can be rough. Emotions run high. Relief, soreness, longing, nostalgia. Once we regain consciousness and stop shivering we realize just exactly what we did. We pushed ourselves farther than ever before and we couldn’t be anymore proud. We forget about the pain, the stress, the deadlines. We focus on the adventures and the friends we made along the way.
Though it was hard, we prevailed. It was a battle against our minds and we won. If you ask any study abroad student what their experience was like, they might say that it was the hardest thing they’ve ever done. And yet, they’d do it all over again in a heartbeat. (Submitted on May 6,2024)
