We are writing to you at the remarkable end to our first–the first–semester of Baret Scholars. Our journey has taken us to three continents. We have been to Washington D.C. in the wake of the United States presidential election, to Hollywood to learn about film production from the director of Twilight, and to New Orleans to learn about the history of jazz; we’ve volunteered with the Red Cross in São Paulo and made a site visit at Itaú Unibanco, the largest financial institution in Latin America. We've gone to the end of the world in Patagonia and learned from indigenous communities in the Amazon; we stepped into the newly reopened Notre Dame in France and learned about the migrant crisis and the impact of climate change on migration patterns in Sicily. In each region we have fallen in love with both their bustling metropolises and countryside, made new friends, and had to say goodbye–only to fall in love with the next region all over again.

Between the Morning Program and our Fellowships, we’ve heard from over 100 speakers and spent more than 300 hours in dialogue with them. They have extended their hands to us as mentors, and been candid with us about their visions for the future. In New York City, Wesleyan President Michael Roth imparted this advice: becoming a mature thinker was all about “thinking for yourself in the company of others.” Robbie Myers, former Editor-in-Chief of Elle, counseled us to “love what you do: follow your curiosity, and confidence will naturally follow.” And in our last newsletter, as I’m sure you remember, expedition leader Nicolas Dubreuil said that his favorite expedition is “the next one.” Put this advice together, and you might have the model of a Baret Scholar: thinking for themselves and following their curiosity with confidence in the company of others, always looking forward to the next leg in their journey.

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In three short months, we’re changing and growing in ways that we could not have predicted. We are discovering what we want to do with our lives and how best to spend our time. With the patient and thoughtful mentorship of our Fellows, we are imagining our futures: some of us who wanted to be economists are now devoting ourselves to music, while others who wanted to be filmmakers are thinking of becoming lawyers. We are reading philosophy, visiting galleries all around the world, and refining and pitching our ideas for new businesses.

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We are also making friends, not just with each other, but with the people we meet in each region. This journey that we are on is our best chance to create a worldwide network of human beings within and without Baret, to make meaningful connections that will empower us for the rest of our lives. Our curiosity is not just for new places and knowledge and foods and breathtaking sights, it is for the profound dignity and complexity of each and every person and region. And what better way to discover that than to journey across the world, as we have?

We’re eager for the next leg in our journey, which will begin in Istanbul in the middle of January. In the next four months, we’ll be exploring underground cities in Cappadocia, learning traditional craft practices in Morocco, climbing Mount Kilimajoro, helping to build schools in Senegal, rescuing turtles in Kenya, and then on to Delhi, and Beijing. Each new experience has the potential to change our lives forever. We Baret Scholars will come together again in Istanbul in two short weeks, with open hearts and open minds, eager to learn and explore all that we do not know yet.

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