The Whirlpool

Margaret Hoyt

We have now been in Iceland for two months. A speedy six weeks yet so much has happened.  We have seen the northern lights, killer whales, breathtaking sunsets, massive glaciers, and quaint harbors. We’ve laughed, had meaningful conversations and created incredible friendships. Two months in and so much has happened, none more monumental than my personal revelations.

Last week, we were given a mid-semester assignment. Naturally, I huffed at the news and added it to my list of things to do. After looking at the assignment, I began reflecting and summarizing all of the realizations I’ve had while here (there’s been a lot!) I started contemplating my past; my childhood, my high school years, my college experience thus far and I experienced a significant personal revelation. I realized I had a romanticized depiction of who I was. Growing up, I described myself as unique, eclectic, a leader rather than a follower, an original. What I realized was how incredibly inaccurate this was. I gave myself credit in some senses of who I was but as far as an environmentalist goes, a person advocating for the earth and setting examples for my friends and family to follow, I was failing without even realizing it. To put it bluntly, I was being a phony.  I was an environmental science major, learning about overcapacity, overconsumption, renewable energy, and resource depletion but was living my life as if I were an economics major.

I was following mainstream norms; living my life the way society expected me to and buying the products media encouraged me to. I was idly living my life, following the current; happy and healthy with an amazing circle or family and friends but simply going through the motions without every asking myself: is my lifestyle sustainable? Is my lifestyle propelling the destruction of our planet? I was casually and carelessly floating through life in a whirlpool of societal norms and mainstream trends.

After much deep introspection I decided now would be the time to switch directions. I have made an honest commitment to change my life, to not only talk to talk but walk the walk. Turning around and switching directions in a whirlpool of this size is going to be no easy feet. It would be much easier to give up and once again be caught in the current of society. It would take less effort, cost last money, take less time (at first glance) and less mental thought and self-reflection to live in the whirlpool but when I quickly consider that, I immediately ask myself “why would I want to live my life in a way that requires the least mental thought? The least physical and mental effort? The easy route?” I refuse to live idly, following the current, continuing to fuel a destructive system that destroys the planet and the organisms that live on it.

Being here has not only encouraged me to reflect in this way but it has motivated me to change. I am so thankful to have had this experience. I have accepted that my previous life was no better than anyone else’s and have consciously made a pledge to change. I have dreams, ambitions, and inspiration that I’ve never experienced in my life. It may be slow and it’ll definitely be challenging but I am ready to reverse the direction of my life from a conventional lifestyle that damages the human spirit and ruins the environment to one that simply follows what is right and what is good.

"G"