The Importance of Immersion

            If I’m going to be honest about one of my flaws, I have trouble remembering to think before I speak.  I like to blurt things out and sometimes I really end up regretting it later.  That is exactly the kind of situation I thought I might have been getting myself into my first weekend in Gulu.  While I was completing some community service with the local boxing club as a part of my internship I blurted out that starting the next week I wanted to learn to be a boxer.  Before the words came out of my mouth I hadn’t really thought about what that meant.  It meant training, running, conditioning and a lot of hard work.  I was going to have to immerse myself in boxing if I actually wanted to learn to be successful and I’m certain I didn’t realize that when I made my grand proclamation. 

Now, this concept of immersion…

There isn’t a single study abroad student I know that hasn’t been told they need to “immerse themselves in the culture.”  For the most part, it’s very true advice.  One cannot say they have gained the full experience of living and studying in another country if all they do is sit in their hotel room and Skype their friends at home.  I thought long and hard before my departure about how I would immerse myself and make the most of my Ugandan experience.  I knew I’d eat the food, see the sites, and speak to the locals; on top of classes and my internship that felt like a pretty well rounded experience.  Never, in all of my wildest dreams had I imagined I would be getting sweaty while throwing punches with a bunch of local boxers whose plan is to turn me into the female Mayweather.

Though boxing wasn’t in the original game plan, training with this club, being a part of something outside of school and internship, has been one of the most valuable aspects of my immersion in Ugandan culture.  I have learned vast amounts from these young men about the culture and life in Gulu.  I have learned history, politics, popular culture and more.  I have also learned a great deal about myself, and the importance of stepping outside my comfort zone time and time again.  I look forward to continuing to box with the club and grow as both a student and as an athlete; and although thinking before you speak is usually suggested, not doing so really worked to my advantage in this case.

See you in the ring!