The View From Afar

I found out Charlie Kirk had been shot from a British roommate while in my hostel dorm in Paracas, Peru.

It's a weird feeling, to see so much happening in your home country while you're on the other side of the world.

2025 has been a turbulent year in the United States. A lot has happened, a lot is happening, and a lot will happen.

I've spent 2025 abroad, observing everything from afar.

Part of me is happy to be abroad during this year, to be isolated from the chaos, tensions and politics of my home country.

Though, part of me feels like I should be home.

I don't recall ever feeling this way before. It's an interesting sensation that I want to compare to watching a train crash in slow motion. You don't want to watch, but you also want to and can't help but watch.

But perhaps more so strangely, you want to be involved in it.

Though, it's an imperfect comparison...

I've changed since falling down the Bitcoin rabbit hole at the beginning of 2024. My views on the world are different. My views on the political landscape are different. My views on our rights as American citizens are more defined and reinforced.

I don't think I'd feel the same way as I do now if the Keith of 2024 were going through the same events of today.

I feel more charged, and feel like there's reason to be more involved.

It's peaceful watching the insanity unfold in my country from afar. There's an incredible amount of noise in the chaos that is the world and the United States in 2025.

It's easy to slip away and continue to live my life abroad, isolated from the noise and turbulence.

But it's not tempting.

While it may be easy to shield myself from what's going on - being on the other side of the world and everything - it's not tempting.

Perhaps it's because I feel my actions can invoke change. Small, tiny actions creating ripples into something bigger.

I don't think I've ever felt this way before, the sensation of power and influence, that it's actually possible to create change and affect outcomes of the surrounding events.

I feel that I should be present during such an important year in history. To be able to live the events in person, rather than through a digital medium.

Time will ultimately tell if the events of this year are truly historic. But one thing is certain; it feels like they are.

Like most things in life, it could very well turn out to be not as significant as it all seems at the moment. Or ironically, maybe once I'm back to living in the U.S. is when things will really get interesting.

We'll all have to wait and see.

I still have a couple of months left of living abroad and traveling. I'll continue to enjoy my travels, but with a careful and focused eye and ear on what's going on back home.