It's Time to Go Surfing - May 31, 2010

The trip is now less than two weeks away. Through a chain of friends and new acquaintances, I've made contact with one person in Turkey and am waiting to see if that leads anywhere. Meanwhile, last week, I got an e-mail from a high school classmate I hadn't heard from in 20+ years. It turns out that she has Turkish friends in the United States that are interested in putting me in touch with some of their relatives in Turkey. Again, I'm waiting to see if that leads anywhere.

I'm optimistic, but lately I've been thinking about pursuing an additional option - CouchSurfing. CouchSurfing is a non-profit organization whose stated vision is "a world where everyone can explore and create meaningful connections with the people and places they encounter."

Members of CouchSurfing, who reside in more than 230 countries, are given the option to host visitors from around the world, and in turn, members may ask other members if they would be willing to let them be guests in their homes while they are traveling. Hosts are not allowed to charge guests for accommodations, which can range from a spare couch to a spare bedroom.

The online network takes numerous steps to heighten safety, such as verifying member addresses and member identities and allowing guests to post feedback on their hosts and hosts to also give feedback on their guests.

I've been a member of CouchSurfing and a similar organization, Hospitality Club, for awhile, but originally I didn't want to utilize either organization in this Turkish endeavor because I wasn't sure if CouchSurfing fit in with my original intention of just throwing my idea into the universe and letting it spread through word of mouth and through those who came across my blog.

CouchSurfing is a wonderful example of benevolence and would seemingly be a great way to forge truly personal ties with Turkish people, but it will require me to go outside my own site to another site to ask members if they would be willing to host me during my trip to Turkey. In the process, I might then attract new readers to my blog, who didn't discover it on their own or through word of mouth.

I had been mulling over this philosophical question when, last week, someone anonymously posted the comment on my blog that I consider trying CouchSurfing, so I came to the conclusion that the universe had, indeed, given me a gift and that I needed to accept it and give CouchSurfing a shot.

This weekend, I also began thinking about the old tale of the man caught in a flood.

As the story goes, flood waters rose higher and higher around the man's house, threatening to engulf the structure and drown the man. A neighbor on dry land tried to throw the man a rope, but the man refused help saying, "I'm waiting for God to save me."

Next, someone in a boat passed by and offered to ferry the man to safety, but, again, the man declined saying, "I'm waiting for God to save me."

By this point, the house was almost completely underwater, so the man climbed onto the roof. A helicopter spotted the man, and the crew lowered a rescue ladder, but the man wouldn't grab on because he still said he was waiting for God to save him.

The man drowned and met God face to face in heaven. Immediately, the man asked, "Why didn't you save me?"

God replied, "I tried. I sent you a rope, a boat, and a helicopter. What more did you want?"

Some readers might disagree with my logic, but I feel like the universe has thrown me a rope in the form of the suggestion that was sent to my blog last week, so I'm grabbing it. I don't want to turn my back on a potential source of benevolence just because it isn't in the exact form that I was expecting and doesn't comply exactly with my originally stated vision.

With that in mind, tomorrow night, I plan to contact some of the Turkish members of CouchSurfing and post a short message explaining what I'm doing with my trip.

Although I'm registered with both CouchSurfing and Hospitality Club, I've never had the opportunity to either host someone or to be a guest in someone's home. Perhaps, this summer we'll all find out what that experience is like, as I continue my quest to determine if a teacher can travel for a month in Turkey relying on nothing but benevolence.



Note: I have a tremendous amount of respect for the work of artists. All images on my blog are either from my own personal photographs or are free images downloaded from the public domain.

The Vision is Becoming a Reality - May 25, 2010

Back in August, I launched this blog to try to show my students that the world is, for the most part, a friendly place made up of kind people who will help others if given the chance. I'm seeking to demonstrate this idea by attempting to travel around the world relying on the goodness of others, rather than on my own wits and financial means.

I began my quest with no destination in mind and no money. In April, readers voted for me to travel to Turkey, but at the time, I had received only a few dollars in donations. My students said the dream was impossible. I still laugh when I think about my student Juan's comment, ""Mister! Now you really do have enough money to take a trip – to McDonald's."

Later that month, a benefactor stepped in unexpectedly and offered to buy me a plane ticket. Today, I received that ticket. So, on June 13th, I will board a plane to Turkey and return 30 days later on July 12th.

I'm still humbled by all of the generosity and support I've received with this endeavor, but am I surprised things have gotten this far? Maybe a little, but over the years I've encountered too many situations traveling where people went out of their way to help me. I find it hard to attribute it all to chance. I believe such things happen because we live in a benevolent universe.

Despite the fact that I now have a plane ticket, some of my students still remain doubtful about whether I will be able to get by in Turkey for a month, but at least, I hope that one or two of my students are finally beginning to believe that maybe the universe really is a friendly place and maybe that anything really is possible, including their own dreams, such as going to college.

But the journey is just beginning, and now I need your help more than ever.

What will I do during my 30 days in Turkey? That's up to all of you. So far, readers have suggested that I visit Bursa, Ephesus, Istanbul and Izmir. I'm looking forward to trying to get to all those locations, but the trip is about more than just sites.

I want to use this blog as an opportunity to uncover and share a more personal side of Turkey. Through the blog, I hope to tell the world about people and organizations that are doing noteworthy, positive, benevolent things in Turkey. It could be a social welfare program. It could be a cherished local artist. It could be a charity. It could be a local custom that most tourists never see.

I'd like to do more than just write on my blog. If a social agency needs volunteers, I'd love to lend a hand. Last summer, I had an opportunity to volunteer with a children's program in Cusco, Peru, and it was one of the highlights of my trip. Volunteering is a great way to experience a country and give back, all at the same time.

I would welcome any suggestions because this is a journey in benevolence, not just site seeing.

I also need your financial assistance. From the very beginning, I told my students that I believe magical things can happen in a friendly universe, which is why I am relying on the universe to keep me afloat in Turkey for 30 days.

So far, I have received $72.29 in donations. I would be grateful for additional contributions. I promise that I will be as frugal as possible with your money. My dream is that I will have enough money left over after the trip so that I can make a donation to the top three charities that readers voted on - Doctors Without Borders, Catholic Relief Services, and Save the Children.

In addition, I would welcome any help with accommodations. I've never met a couch I didn't like, and I think I'm an easy house guest. Also, I would be willing to do any chores or any other work to help earn my keep.

Already, a couple of readers have given me contact information for people in Turkey who might be willing to assist me with this pursuit. It's the typical "friend of a friend of a friend" scenario. I'm anxious to see how it all unfolds, but I'm confident it will be good because, again, I believe good things happen in a benevolent universe.

Before I close, I wanted to thank all of you who continue to read my blog and to share the site with others. Back in August, I discussed the blog with my class of 15 students and with six friends. I told no one else because I wanted to see how the idea would spread via the internet and via word of mouth like ripples on a lake.

I'm a bit overwhelmed when I say that as of today, I've had more than 1,800 hits on the site from 38 states, 29 countries and two territories. As I continuously tell my students, the world really is a small place.

Often, I like to finish with a quote. In less than three weeks, I will be stepping onto Turkish soil for the first time, so this quote from explorer Sir Richard Francis Burton seems fitting. "One of the gladdest moments of human life, methinks, is the departure upon a distant journey into unknown lands. Shaking off with one mighty effort the fetters of habit, the leaden weight of routine, the cloak of many cares and the slavery of home, man feels once more happy."

I hope you all will continue to accompany me on this journey as we discover together whether a teacher can travel around the world relying on nothing but benevolence.

UPDATE:(June 26)

The day after I wrote this entry, I updated my class on the trip. In particular, I wanted to see the reaction of my biggest skeptic. Last month, when I told her someone had offered to buy me a ticket, she said, "I'll believe it when I see the ticket."

Today, I showed her a copy of the ticket. For a few minutes, she looked down and said nothing, as the other students excitedly passed it around and bombarded me with questions.

"You're flying to New York first?"......"Yes, a lot of international flights go through New York."......"Are you scared?"......"No, I like to fly."......"I didn't know your name was Mark. Can I call you that after graduation?"......"Sure."

Many of the kids smiled while reading over the details on the ticket. I'm not sure what they were thinking, but I'd like to believe that holding the ticket made their own dreams seem a little more attainable.

Finally, my disbelieving student looked up and simply said, "Wow!"

Sometimes Tomorrow Never Comes - May 8,2010

"I will ________________when____________________."

If we reflect on our lives, it doesn't take long to fill in the blanks.

"I will go back to school when I save a little more money ..... I will start a family when I am more established in my career ..... I will spend more time with my friends when I'm finished with the quarterly reports ..... I will travel to Europe when I retire."

I'm certainly no expert at avoiding procrastination.

For years, I contemplated leaving reporting to become a teacher, but I kept waiting for the day when I would have more certainty that it was "the right path for me." I still might be reporting and wondering "what if" had it not been for friends who drew me into the deep end with a combination of coercion, reassurance, and threats. Now, I can't imagine my life without a classroom in it.

Last spring, I kept rationalizing that I would wait to set up this blog when I had more time to "flesh out the details" and when the economy "picked up." Again, a couple of friends helped in the decision-making process by encouraging me to take the leap of faith.

Often, I turn to my family and friends when I'm stuck in the "I will_________when _________" mode, but if I'm still unable to act, I think of Bill.

I met Bill back in the 1980s while doing temp work at a pharmaceutical company in New York City. Not a week would pass by without Bill talking about the lake house that he was building for retirement.

Bill's plan was to put in as much overtime as possible so that he could afford to retire early. Bill was the classic workaholic. When he was not working, Bill was overseeing the construction of his dream house. For years, it was work and house, work and house, work and house.

But Bill always said the sacrifice would be worth it because, once he retired, he would slow down and finally enjoy life.

When I left New York, Bill was still working feverishly to accomplish his plans. Years later, I caught up with one of my former colleagues at the pharmaceutical company and asked about Bill.

Yes, Bill did retire early, and yes, he did move to his dream house to finally slow down and enjoy life. As a man in his late 50s, Bill looked forward to many happy years at the lake, but that never happened. Less than 24 months later, Bill died of cancer.

"I will _________________when _____________________."

I've been thinking about Bill a lot lately because of a retreat I did last month at the monastery of the Benedictine Sisters in Cullman, Alabama.

One day, while walking through the community's cemetery, I noticed the grave markers of two women: Sister Angela Mulvey and Sister Rose Coleman. Both were born about a month apart in 1885.

Grave markers can't reveal the answers to questions such as where the two women were from; did they knew each prior to arriving at the monastery; or why they decided to become Sisters, but I'd like to imagine that the two women had known each other in childhood and that together they might have made the decision to enter the religious order.

Having a trusted friend would have made the transition to Benedictine life a lot easier, but even if they weren't prior friends, I'm sure it was a comfort for Angela and Rose to be so close in age.

Life was difficult in the 1800s in rural Alabama, especially with the oppressive heat and illnesses such as tuberculosis, but it still must have been a shock to the community when Sister Angela died in 1905 at the age of 19.

I'll never know what Sister Angela envisioned for her future, but I'll bet she expected to be on earth a lot longer. Maybe, she, too, had a list of "I will___________when_________."

I'm especially curious how the death would have impacted Sister Rose, since they were the same age. Did it make her appreciate life even more? Did seeing her friend die motivate Rose to not put off till tomorrow what she could do today?

On the other hand, Sister Rose might have dismissed the death as an isolated tragedy and maintained the belief that she would have plenty of years left to develop into a master teacher or to cure the sick or to perhaps one day become the prioress of the community. After all, chances were good that two young Sisters wouldn't both die as teenagers.

And so, life probably returned quickly to normal.

When I visited the cemetery last month, I first came across the grave of Sister Angela, but it wasn't hard to find Sister Rose’s burial spot because it was located just inches away from Angela's. It turned out that a year and a half after Sister Angela's death, Sister Rose also died - on Angela's birthday.

"I will _________________when _____________________."

I believe we procrastinate because we think we'll have enough time to get to the items on our lists. Unfortunately, life seems to intervene if we put things off.

All too often that desire to go back to school is sidelined forever in lieu of buying a new house or a new car. Even though the career becomes established, the dream of having kids dies because the would-be parents are now too old. The quarterly reports get finished, but the friendships that were long neglected deteriorate beyond repair. The retirement watch is finally awarded, but the recipient's health has deteriorated, making the trip to Europe impossible.

Teaching high school kids is a constant reminder of the rapidity with which time passes. It seems like just yesterday when I graduated from high school, but the age on my driver's license indicates that it actually occurred 27 years ago, a fact that my students enjoy kidding me about. "Mister, you're old," they've been known to say, which in their eyes, I am.

My kids still don't believe me when I tell them that they'll wake up one day and wonder where the years have gone. That's why I always tell them to NOT put things off and to quit saying, "I will ____________
when _____________."

I'll admit that I've still got many things on my "I will_______" list, but at least I can say that Traveling Teacher 2010 is not one of them. I hope that you are enjoying my blog, and I hope that you will continue to support me in my effort to prove that someone can travel around the world relying on the generosity of strangers.

How about you? What's on your "I will_________when_________list?"

We might be able to put the items on our lists off until tomorrow or next week or even next year and still achieve our goals, but remember that Bill, Sister Angela, and Sister Rose also likely kept putting some things off until tomorrow, but ultimately they arrived at the moment in their lives when tomorrow never came, and one day we'll all arrive at that point, too.


UPDATE ON TRIP TO TURKEY

In an earlier post, I told you that a friend has offered to donate a ticket for my trip to Turkey. She is still pricing the ticket and is currently out of town, herself, so I don't have the travel dates yet. I will pass them along as soon as I know them.

In the mean time, I still have received only $34.05 to spend on food and lodging. Please consider making a donation using either one of the two PayPal buttons on the right side of my blog.