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Alright, let's have another go at this. And not just because I should be studying for the final I have in less than 12 hours. Of course not.

Break is quickly approaching, meaning there will be a lot more time to keep up with a blog. Also, I'm hoping to apply for Nicholas D. Kristof's annual "Win-A-Trip" essay contest. Kristof is a humanitarian and New York Times columnist who sponsors this contest each year for aspiring-journalists currently in college. The winner travels with him to Africa, where they are essentially given a crash course on reporting on social issues in the developing world. It's an amazing experience, and I've wanted to apply ever since my brother first told me about it. Kristof has an incredible career; traveling the world and reporting on the inspiring and heartbreaking situations he finds. I doubt that I'll be picked, in fact I know I won't, but now that I'm in college and eligible I'll do it anyway. I don't have much experience to recommend me, but I'll still apply every year. On ne sait jamais!


Speaking of different countries and languages I don't speak, someone recently showed me a list of words that are virtually untranslatable. Some of them are really beautiful, some just funny. These are my favorites:
2. Mamihlapinatapei

Yagan (indigenous language of Tierra del Fuego) – “the wordless, yet meaningful look shared by two people who both desire to initiate something but are both reluctant to start” 
7. Tartle

Scottish – The act of hestitating while introducing someone because you’ve forgotten their name. 
17. L’appel du vide
French – “The call of the void” is this French expression’s literal translation, but more significantly it’s used to describe the instinctive urge to jump from high places.
18. Ya’aburnee
Arabic – Both morbid and beautiful at once, this incantatory word means “You bury me,” a declaration of one’s hope that they’ll die before another person because of how difficult it would be to live without them.

I love language. I really wish I was gifted with learning others, but I'll have to content myself with just enjoying English and little bits and pieces of others for the time being.