Remembering London: Hoping for good in chaotic times
If I were to ask you what you thought of London
right now, what would you tell me? Until
this July, I would say London was that faraway,
magical place I only dreamed of before studying
abroad with the British Studies Program.
Imagine it: Half a world away, a bustling city
opens its borders to accept you. After a nine
hour plane ride, you hop aboard a coach and
travel through this new country where it’s almost
impossible not to say “We aren’t in Kansas
anymore…”
I felt a keen shiver of fear and excitement as
the only ULM student to participate in the BSP
program this year.
For a month, I was part of the daily workings
in one of the most world-renowned cities
known to history. I walked the streets, ate the
food, read the papers and knew I was experiencing
the world in a way in which few students
might ever have the chance.
Before it was time to pack my bags and
head back for Monroe, I felt as if I were leaving
a second home filled with new and precious
memories.
About a week after I returned, I saw that
same familiar city in flames.
Riots had burst out and covered the news.
The streets I walked just days before became
scenes of chaos and violence. I watched the
television in stunned silence, remembering my
July home.
It gave me reason to pause and think: What
happened to that poised and dignified British
atmosphere? What had changed so drastically
in such little time to transform this country into
the mirror of itself?
All countries have the capability to become a
ticking time bomb, where one event might trigger
a whole series of choas. The world is home
to many different people. Despite the trials life
throws our way, I believe that people will always
be brought together to put the pieces back
into their rightful place.
After all, it takes the darkest of times for
lights to shine their brightest. For a case like
this, I find the British World War II adage a fitting
resolution for those in the face of adversity:
Keep calm and carry on.
