The title was not intended to specifically reference towards today's current temperature increase - but in saying that - I thought it would be interesting to comment on how it feels as if my life's temperature is accelerating just as our earth's is.
A pinnacle has been reached where I feel so absent yet so involved. To describe that more in a less abstract sense: I am having an existential crisis. And not about a singular point but about multiple that have all complied comfortably on top of one another to result in a gloriously colourful sundae of existentialism. My current situation takes place in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A 19-year-old in the heart of South America's 'City of Fury', life likes to keep itself pretty hot.
This year has brought me to Argentina for a volunteer gap year. The thrilling and unpredictable nature of Argentina convinced oneself totally into coming to the place. In 2018, I finished my high school in Christchurch - university was not the most striking of opportunities, mostly due to the fact that my mind could not make a decision on what it was that I wanted to dedicate my tertiary study towards. It dabbled in some psychology, film directing and even forensic science. Those board areas definitely called for some evaluation - seriously! One thing I knew was that my style of life was pretty much 'let life take me to wherever it feels I need to be', the idea of Argentina came to me quickly and made sense. It made sense because of the fact that I learnt Spanish throughout school = they speak Spanish in Argentina (10 points for Gryffindor). I had an innate desire to see more of the world = Argentina is more of the world (seriously applauding one's obvious display of a high intellectual capacity). And volunteering sounded pretty cool = volunteering is pretty cool (very cool). Next thing you know, I was hopping on a plane to Auckland from Christchurch, transitioning onwards from Auckland to Buenos Aires - wow, this was big.
The structure of my volunteer year was to be divided out into 3 sections: placement number one, a free travelling period and placement number two. Placement one was scheduled to take place in a wee town (un pueblecito) called Villa Allende situated within the Argentinian province of Córdoba. It initiated in March and finished in June. Let me just for one second exaggerate that 'wee' part too, I mean extra small. If you compare small to the likes of someone thinking that Christchurch, New Zealand is small, then multiply that ideology by 100. My volunteer position was set to work within an organisation that provided care for all groups of people that suffered from some type of oppression. That included the likes of orphans, mentally-disabled adults and physically-disabled adults. I worked and lived within this organisation for the duration of 4 months. Volunteering there had to have been the most difficult yet rewarding period of my life. In retrospect, now I absolutely appreciate my experience there in Villa Allende. It taught me a damn lot. I will dedicate more publications to that in the future.
Then commenced a month of FREEDOM inbetween my volunteer placements. My best friend and I had planned for him to come to Argentina and we would complete an incredible road trip around the north of Argentina in the month of July. Destinations included: Buenos Aires, Mendoza, Córdoba, Tilcara and Puerto Iguazú. This trip lasted for 17 days. 17 days worth of insanity, sore body parts, beautiful sights and bloody long bus rides - I'm telling you maybe 18 hour bus rides are not the way to do it. But it was grand. My bud left and guess who else wanted to pop over to join the ride? Mi familia, that's who! Not seeing my family for a decent period of time was something unfamiliar to me but with Skype and Facebook, contact is made so much easier nowadays. Zuckerberg, I am very thankful for your work at Harvard, sir. With my family, we travelled from Buenos Aires to Salta to Puerto Iguazú. From there we crossed the border to Brazil! And in Brazil we went to Rio and Buzios. After all of that, we made our way back to Buenos Aires where I sent them off for another four months. And if I already hadn't been busy enough, how about 10 days by yourself in Palermo, Buenos Aires without knowing a single soul? Anyone? *Ella Gibson raises her hand*. All of these adventures contain brilliant stories that I will most definitely inform y'all on in the future.
Now, I find myself stuck in the bustling city of Buenos Aires for four months. Not quite in the capital of Buenos Aires, but within the neighbourhoods of Martinez and San Isidro that are connected to the capital by a train line that takes about 30 minutes. Here, I volunteer as an english assistant within a primary and secondary bilingual school and also within a language institute. I do love it here. The placement begun in August and will finish in at the end of November. Well embedded into the Buenos Aires life, politics and routine; these three months have gone by rapidly. 5 more weeks until I trod back onto my homeland. That Ōtautahi soil, brothers.
With all of that being said, now is absolutely (in my opinion) a very perfect time to begin a blog to act as an expression in many forms - mainly a blog - to capture these present hot times. An existential crisis of the time being is happening in the sense of this looming date rising in my horizon's abyss; my return flight home.
This blog will encompass the life of a 19-year-old kiwi chica. Composed of stories, advice, life lessons, worldly observations, videos and whatever else Ella's life brings to surface.
For all of this and more, read my new found blog 'Born In 2000': established on the 28th of October, 2019. Where Ella Gibson explores her life that exceeds all limitations. Publications should be expected twice a week. Take this present moment now and rock it!