Orange spots of sunlight gleam between the bluegum trees as I watch the world disappear behind us in the fingerprint-speckled rearview mirror on the mini bus. To our left, Mulanje mountain glows purple as it always does at this time in the evening when the sun sinks below the earth, putting an end to the hot day. A faint, yet almost full moon floats above the mountain, almost in the center of the elongated rock structure.
Along my way from the capital city, I'd seen so many depressing as well as incredible sights that, despite having been here for over 20 months, still touch my heart. Child labor at its finest as kids dig up dry fields to cultivate and struggle to carry buckets of water on their heads. Diminishing forests next to piles and piles of charcoal. Then there are the pristinely wild looking mountains and hillsides and cute lines of chicks waddling along the sides of the roads. I think about how new and shocking this all was when I arrived here; debating whether it's me who's changed or whether I've just become accustomed to the sights and this life.
Yet every single day I can find something to be thankful for here in Malawi. And it's not just the obvious things like running water and electricity. It's the opportunity to live in this changing place and to see the beauty of it before it's all gone. It's the chance to experience a culture from as close to an insiders view as I can get. It's the fact that I can have conversations with anyone and everyone in the vernacular language and convince them that I'm not just a tourist.
And that's my favorite thing about my life right now. I'm living this exotic lifestyle that seems wild and raw and absurd to so many, yet to me, I can't think of anywhere else I'd rather be than out in the world, doing my thing, appreciating the beauty around me, and breaking the mold of what life should be like by challenging social norms and living a simple, happy life. Despite the hardships, I can't think of anywhere is rather be. Bliss, my friends. Find it.