Unplugged and Natural
Before I fly away from Altea, let me tell you more about a couple things that have changed in me since I’ve participated in Edge.
The first thing I learned was how to love myself better.
One great thing about Edge is the opportunity to be unplugged. We did not have much time to go on the internet throughout the day and if we wanted Wi-Fi we had to go to a café to get connected to it. Therefore, I found I spent much less time comparing myself and my adventures to others online. I was able to fully immerse myself in the culture of Altea.
The disconnection also allowed more opportunities to connect with my housemates and enjoy some introvert time. For those of you who are not introverts, “introvert time” is nearly like water to introverts. It is a time in which we process our internal thoughts alone and recharge from an exhaustingly social day.
I also found myself waking up and not caring to wear makeup. Makeup is not bad, but I never want to feel like I need it to go out. The culture of Spain embraces the natural face and I not only find that beautiful, but practical. In addition, I never heard the women I was around speak badly about their appearance. This was very refreshing and rubbed off on me.
Arianna often talked about embracing who you are. This can refer to pursuing gifts and talents, but also your appearance. You were born in the specific family, in your temple, time and place all for a certain reason. God makes no mistakes and Arianna didn’t allow us to think that He did. It is not a mistake that God gave me a voice to sing his praise, though I tend to be shy. It is not a mistake that I write worship music.
The way I was created is all part of God’s plan.
