Trying Something New
Before I
came to Germany, I never drank alcohol and was never interested in doing so.
Getting drunk never appealed to me so I stayed away from even tasting drinks
like wine and beer. If you asked any of my friends or especially the people on
my freshman floor, they would tell you that I was even a little closed minded
about the topic.
Now,
deciding to go to Germany changed all of that. In the country that gave birth
to the world’s largest beer festival, was I going to still block out drinking?
Was I going to deprive myself of experiencing something that is so culturally
significant to the country that I will be staying in for four months? The short
answer is no. The long answer involves me sitting in my bed trying to
reevaluate my life decisions but eventually, still comes out to a solid no.
Too long have I been stubborn about
something that really is not a big deal. I have come to the realization that drinking
is not a 0 to 60 phenomenon. Just because I decide to drink one glass of wine
or one mug of beer does not mean that I will wind up in the bathroom an hour
later puking my brains out. I consider myself a very responsible person and I
refuse to let my fear of losing control hold me back from having the best
experience possible while studying abroad.
The wine tasting excursion is the
perfect example to prove my point. The old me would have been annoyed by the
mere fact that an event focused on alcohol was worked into the schedule. I
would have immediately cast the excursion aside as pointless and dreaded that
impending day that it would arrive. But now, after pushing myself to be as open
as possible to new experiences, I embraced the wine tasting. I even looked
forward to it. It was the perfect opportunity to test my new frame of mind.
By being so open, I learned to
appreciate wine making as a family business and as a passion. The woman who guided
our tasting is part of the ninth generation of family working continuously to
make Adam Muller wine. When she spoke about her family and the wine that she
presented to us, I could tell that she was extremely proud of her family’s work
and its long rooted history within the town of Heidelberg. Between her passion
for wine making and the quaint living room setting of the tasting, I felt
comfortable enough to indulge myself in drinking each glass of wine.
During those couple hours, I kept
thinking back to freshman year and how far I have come since
then. Not only was
I mentally ok with sipping on wine, but I was in the company of friends and
teachers doing the same thing. Nothing bad happened to me or them and I was
able to enjoy another side of Heidelberg that is somewhat off the beaten path.
This experience has definitely encouraged me to continue my efforts of keeping
an open mind to new things I may come across while studying abroad and during
life itself. I greatly enjoyed the wine tasting and am looking forward to more
positive new experiences down the road!
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