Emotional times in Phoenix

After a beautiful but also cold time in Austin, it was time for some sun again. Unfortunately, I will probably see gray skies often enough in Germany soon! Kevin wanted to burn into my memory how much sun Germany misses compared to some places in the USA. In addition, his duty called him back to Phoenix, as not everyone is blessed with so many weeks of travel time off like me. In the USA, many companies only give 10!! days of vacation per year. No wonder that many Americans rarely have the chance to leave their own country. However, Kevin wanted to show me in Phoenix that you can fully enjoy life and make time for freedom despite work obligations. Although I was already in Phoenix in November, Kevin insisted on flying there again for a few days and getting to know the life of the people in Phoenix from the perspective of a local. Since my resistance (flying again is too expensive, I don't want to be a burden to him anymore, ...) has little effect on Kevin, he simply booked me a flight and hotel, so I could soak up the sun in Phoenix again.

I can't say it enough, the weather has an incredibly magical power. When you suddenly go from freezing, wet cold to sunny 25 degrees, you feel like a completely different person. I felt much more like going out, I felt more vital and cheerful than in the cold Austin. Because Kevin knows how much I love nature and because he wanted to show me once again how beautiful his homeland is, we went on various hikes in Phoenix. One of these hikes included the most beautiful desert lake I have ever seen.

It was simply magical to see the shimmering blue water in the middle of the desert, where people were swimming, fishing, or boating. The cacti, the sand, and the desert rocks surrounding the lake gave the whole thing a very special atmosphere. And who would have thought, but after so much hiking, I could actually celebrate a special hiking debut in the new year: Just like Kevin, I hiked for the first time in my life with a kettlebell on my shoulder.

So I carried 12 KG extra weight with me to make the hike a bit more intense and to do something good for my muscles. I can tell you, those 12 KG make a damn big difference! Normally, hikes only make me tired after a while. However, this hike with extra weight was challenging and exhausted me after just a few kilometers. Bbbuuuttt, I made it and I'm naturally very proud of it :)

We also climbed Kevin's favorite mountain in Phoenix (this time without the kettlebell for me) to get another great view of the whole city. I still stick to it, Phoenix and the desert are breathtakingly beautiful and the combination of this metropolis and the desert is simply unique.

They told me about their lifestyles, were very interested in my journey, and showed me incredible appreciation. One of the guys even learned a bit of German to welcome me in my language, so sweet! It is so beautiful to be so lovingly included, even though everyone knew that I would only be part of the group for a very limited time. My firm resolution is to treat the next traveler I meet with the same love and introduce them to our German life to some extent. I hope that some of the people I had the pleasure of meeting here will come on a trip to Germany soon.

Overall, it was a quite emotional experience for me to go back to the city where I collected so many great impressions at the beginning of my journey and this time to know that my journey is coming to an end. Being back in the desert that I liked so much, in which I also had so many emotional experiences, was an overwhelming feeling. I am realizing so much gratitude and infinite joy for everything I have been able to experience towards the end of the trip. This time was insane, never in my life have I been allowed to get to know myself more intensely and live more than during this trip.

At the same time, I was also overcome by a great sadness in Phoenix. Soon, all this freedom, travel, and these interesting encounters and landscapes will be over, and everyday life will be waiting for me again, where I have to write my master's thesis and fulfill other obligations. I am afraid of this transition and hope that it doesn't bring me down too much.

From Arizona, I will now fly to San Francisco, as my flight back to Germany will depart from here soon. This also means saying goodbye to Kevin, which is quite difficult for me. He accompanied me at so many stations, on so many days of my journey, and he helped me so much to enjoy my trip. He was there for me in the most difficult moments of my journey and treated me with endless kindness and care, so it hurts to let go of all of that.

During the trip, I often asked myself what I did to deserve all these wonderful people like Kevin, who helped me so much, welcomed me, supported me, and treated me with warmth. The only explanation I can come up with is that there must be something like fate that connects us with other people when we need it. During my journey, I learned to trust in life. Whenever you think it can't go on, some path, some loving person, or a sign shows up and moves us forward. Kevin, in particular, has shown me how much we should trust in life and always maintain a positive attitude to be happy. When I first met Kevin, I often wondered why he selflessly helps me and why he supports me in the most challenging moments of my journey, even though it means making sacrifices in terms of time and money. I thought Kevin must be a lucky person in life and therefore has so much love and care to give. Kevin has the incredible ability to bring a smile to everyone's face by charmingly approaching people and saying something nice that makes them feel better. But after getting to know Kevin better, I realized that it is not his consistently happy life, but the opposite that has made him the helpful person he is. Two days before Kevin and I met while hiking, his best friend died of cancer, after battling the disease for 2 years. To be there for his friend, Kevin moved in with him during this illness phase and took care of him together with the friend's parents until the bitter end. Hats off, that's what I call true friendship! I think it's a huge achievement to be there for a friend while they are dying and not run away out of fear. Not many people can say that they would put their own life on hold for a friend's illness. This once again showed me how important good friends are to me! I am so grateful for the true friends who are always there for me, but who also trust me with their own joys and problems. Even we young people can easily lose friends, a terrifying thought for me! You can't tell your friends enough how much you love them and you should take the time to spend as much time with them as possible, because life can be damn short.

Kevin's friend left behind a four-year-old son who now has to live without his dad. Thanks to my trip to Phoenix, I had the opportunity to meet the little one, who is simply incredibly cute and heartwarming! Kevin still lives in his deceased friend's house to look after the son and to relieve the deceased friend's parents! Here too, Kevin has my huge respect. I am also sure in this case that only a few people would take care of a friend's child. And while I often struggle with my little everyday worries and think they are the biggest suffering in the world, I have noticed again at this point how insignificant my stupid worries often are. The son of Kevin's deceased friend has lost his father, at the same time his mother cannot take care of him due to dependency problems. So he will probably grow up with his grandparents, whom I also had the pleasure to meet. Although the two are incredibly caring towards their grandson, at the same time they are in the midst of the grieving process, have to consider where they want to move to, and above all, how they can find the energy for the little one. As cute as he may be, a 4-year-old spirited child probably needs attention and care around the clock. This job would already overwhelm me at the age of 20, how the grandparents can manage it in their mid-60s remains a big mystery to me. It's great for the little man that his deceased dad's friends are taking care of him. Nevertheless, I feel incredibly sorry for him to grow up without his parents and to have to experience so much pain at such a young age. When I said goodbye, he didn't want to let go of me and told me not to leave, he hates goodbyes. Rarely in life have I been emotionally touched like this, I would have loved to take him with me and take away all his pain.

But this situation is not the only suffering that Kevin has witnessed in his life. I don't know if you have ever heard of the fallen firefighters in Prescott? Prescott is the beautiful small town in the mountains of Arizona that I was also able to visit during my journey. In 2013, 19 firefighters burned to death there while trying to control the wildfires in Prescott. Shortly before that, Kevin had worked in this firefighting crew until he had to quit due to back problems. Without back problems, Kevin would probably have burned as well. Instead, in 2013, he didn't lose his own life, but many good friends and colleagues. I don't think anyone can really comprehend what it feels like to lose friends in such a tragic way, it's terrible. In addition, Kevin is still in contact with many widows, parents, and children of the victims and does not hesitate to support them. Respect!!!

And as if that wasn't enough fateful life, Kevin was also confronted with significant problems during his youth.

I still wonder how a person who has experienced so much shit in life can be so warm and helpful towards others. After getting to know Kevin's story, I almost felt bad that he cared so much about my little travel problems. But as I have often realized during my journey, it seems that people who have been confronted with sadness, loneliness, and other problems during their lives are more open to seeing the worries of other people. They probably know what sadness feels like and therefore want to help others get out of these situations.

Furthermore, it seems that being frequently confronted with death leads to a greater appreciation for one's own life and a desire to live each day intensely. I envy Kevin for not being broken by all the suffering, but for facing his feelings, allowing the grief, and thereby now being stronger than many other people I know. Kevin once again showed me that running away from sadness, anger, and fear brings you nothing. Allowing all the pain, on the other hand, probably makes you stronger and more open to your fellow human beings. In this sense, I am now facing my sadness that my adventure is slowly coming to an end. The beautiful thing, however, is that all the wonderful impressions I have gathered so far will stay with me for the rest of my life. And I will surely always carry the loving people in my heart and hopefully keep in touch with some of them personally. While some may say that traveling is way too expensive and in the end you don't have anything tangible from the money spent, I have to say the exact opposite: Never has invested money been more worthwhile.