An obligation. A Responsibility. A commitment. Words that initially described my mission trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2021. Do I truly have to go? I thought in my head. At first, I believed it was unnecessary. That it would be a waste of a week of my summer vacation and that I wouldn’t gain anything except some service hours toward my confirmation. That was until the second day.

When I first arrived at Grand Rapids, I thought, this is going to be a long week. From the microwaved food to the school classroom floors that we had to sleep on, I wasn’t enjoying my time. That was until we started our projects. Looking around seeing the conditions other people lived in 365 days of the year put my life in perspective. My life didn’t seem so miserable. Compared to the living conditions of the people in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I was very privileged. My necessities were their luxuries. The microwaved lunches started to taste better and the school classroom floors started to become more comfortable. As the week went on and our service projects were progressing, I started to really enjoy my time on the mission trip. So many joyful moments whether it was finishing our trailer home skirting project or seeing the faces of the people whose houses we fixed after we were done.

 I learned many lessons such as the benefits of working together as a team, reflecting on my inner self, and multitasking. This trip completely changed my view on how the world works. I realized that many people don’t grow up in a two-parent household in which both parents have stable jobs and good marriage. Not every person grows up going to a good high school and is given hundreds of opportunities. Going from Hartland, Wisconsin where many people are wealthy, comfortable, and given countless opportunities to Grand Rapids, Michigan in which many families are below the poverty line, live in trailer homes, and are given little to no opportunities put my life in perspective. The change of scenery caused these realizations which have resulted in me having a new philosophy in life. That philosophy is to do the best I can with the advantages I’ve been given. To make the best with what I’ve got.

By far the most important thing I’ve learned from my mission trip is to jump head-on into new experiences whether I predict they will be good or not. At first, I thought the mission trip was going to be a waste of time. A  time in my life that I would regret. Instead, it was one of the most memorable times in my entire life. This experience gave me new confidence to join new clubs and sports during high school. I’ve also been more adventurous in my decision making whether those are small decisions like what to wear to school or big decisions like what field I want to go into for a career. This lesson and many others that I learned are the reasons why I will never regret my trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan. I plan to use this new confidence and idea of jumping head-on into new experiences whenever I stumble upon things that are foreign to me.