As I walk through the streets of Lima and sit down to take notes, I look back at my life and remember. I remember my dreams as I was growing up, dreams of adventures, dreams of travels and dreams of meeting other cultures. I remembered the crew of the USS Enterprise on the Start Trek episodes, traveling throughout the galaxy and encountering other species, other civilizations and their unique cultures. I remember dreaming about having experiences like that one day. I always kept repeating and memorizing those words from Captains James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard at the very beginning of the show, “where no one has gone before”.
My life hasn’t been easy; it has been painful in many instances. I have been through dark alleys where some of my worst fears trapped me for a while, perhaps a little longer. Times when I thought I would never be able to explore the galaxy and meet other cultures; times when I thought I would never see the light at the end of the tunnel. But I have been able to move forward and leave all that darkness behind. Most importantly is that those experiences have made me stronger and focused to accomplish the many things I want for my life. They have given me the incentive to look at the stars once again and dream.
I might not be on board the USS Enterprise, but I have just started traveling to explore new worlds and new understandings of human civilization. Perhaps I will never be eating gagh with a Klingon at the Ten Forward and drinking Romulan Ale, but I am surely enjoying a good anticucho or ceviche in a nearby restaurant with a nice Pisco Sour. I have just started the quests to find those unique experiences nobody else can make you feel, unless you jump and reach for the stars. I am now going where no one has gone before!!!!
“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams” – Eleanor Roosevelt
the fourth explorer 