Let love be your first breath...

20/06/13 

Let's go back to Monday 17th June, when I touched down in Glasgow Airport after an unexpected weekend in Birmingham. 

With five hours in Birmingham Airport and nothing to do but reflect on the weekend, I realised just how much it had effected me. 3 days, 9 guests, 1600 attendees and queuing for too-many-hours-to-speak-of. Yet by the end of it...I didn't care about the sore feet, the hunger ache in my stomach or the mess of my hair because I didn't have time to shower. It was a weekend of inspiration, insight and love. I arrived a giddy fangirl and left feeling more experienced, and above all, ready for the adventure that lies ahead of me.

Before we move onto South Africa, I can't help but tell you more about birmingham. I know it's not Project Trust related, but the connections between this tiny trip away and the gap year that lies ahead of me are many. 

So, you might now be surprised (I hope) to read that my trip to Birmingham was for a "The Vampire Diaries" Convention. A convention held by Rogue Events, under the name of Insurgence 5. A weekend to remember for sure. Nine wonderful guests attended the event. Formally known as Sexy Salvatore, The coolest Original - Cole, the bad-ass of all bad-asses, Bonnies Dad, that mad-vampire-hunter, Caroline, the even more bad-ass Bennett Witch, Klaus' Bitch and the humbling Alarik.

Well, to clue you in, you could now say they are also known as Ian Somerhalder, Nathaniel Buzolic, Sebastian Roche, Rick Worthy, Todd Williams, Candice Accola, Kat Graham, Michael Trevino and Matt Davis. 

Ian smells like apples. Maybe it was just perfume lingering from the girl who met him first. Who cares, it's a connection to the memory. He also runs a wonderful charity that I hope to one day contribute to. Check it out here. Nate is one of the most inspiring people I have met in my life. "Let love be your first breath" is his way of life. And that bad-ass? Sebastian Roche is the craz-EE-est of all craz-EE-z. He should be a comedian. A vast contrast to his oh-so-serious self in TVD. Bonnies Dad is in fact Rick Worthy, thanks to this guy, the incesive beep-beep-beep of the Harlem Shake will never leave my head. I don't mind. Also, thank you for the twitter follow. That mad Todd has awesome eyes. Candice and Kat are both inspirations to my generation, they have a confidence that most would yearn for. Michael's muscles are real, him and Candice have a real connection, it's not just for show. And finally, Matt Davis looked a little uneasy on stage, I think he has some deep secret that nobody will ever know.

I guess the main news that comes from this is... these people are real. They put up a good show (a very good show)  for your entertainment. But behind the sparkles they have lives, they have history, they have the worries, hopes and dreams of normal people. Sure, some may have reached the peak of their deepest dreams. But that doesn't mean they are perfect. All weekend long the guests were asked questions by the audience. "What inspired you?" "Where do you want to be five years from now?" "What's your favourite life experience?" 

It was hard not to notice, that almost every guest, at least once, answered the question with "Why don't you tell me your answer to the question?" and then suddenly...everyone in the room was connected. On entering the hall, you can't help but see this person on stage as elite, powerful, above you. When they turn the attention of the entire room onto that one girl, nervous in the corner with a microphone, you realize we are all one in the same. It was beautiful.

I cant count the amount of times I was told "follow your dreams". 

It was even more wonderful to realise...well, I am. I took a step out of my comfort zone and signed up for a year of working with children I have never met in a foreign country I have never been to. I can't even guess at the experiences I will gain and the situations I will come across. Not knowing what lies ahead of you can indeed be very scary, nerve-wracking. But what I love most is the thrill. It's so exciting. I enjoy those nervous butterflies that warm apon me every time I speak of South Africa.

Sitting in a room with more than 1500 people, I wondered how many of them had chased their dreams. Was it only those who chased them so far they ended up on the stage infront of us? Was it only me? Was everyone chasing their dream? I guess I will never know because I didn't ask.

 I will just be grateful that I took the leap into the rest of my life. And Mr Somerhalder, I will enjoy the journey more than anything. 

When time's get hard in South Africa, I feel like I now have the confidence to grin and bear it. I could have cried all weekend, that's how sore my feet were. But I didn't, I laughed instead. I laughed because it was so funny that we had just stood in line for two hours, just for someones autograph. Don't get me wrong, I'll do it again. I got to meet the man that inspired me to jump into charity work in the first place, and I will never forget that. I hope to re-pay him one day by working for his charity. 

I'll jump into South Africa with two feet and my arms wide open. I feel blessed, that at 19, I have been given the opportunity to chase my dreams. I will cherish every moment, I'll be grateful for the experiences and memories that I will gain. When I meet people, I don't want to remember them as a passing face. I want to get to know them to the extent that they are a story to tell. 

A good one.