The sound of one hand clapping...

This is Matt with a few final thoughts after returning from our expedition. A week has passed since I left Costa Rica and parted ways with some amazing new friends. I've had some time now to decompress, get much needed rest, and think about how our expedition has affected me and what it means.

First, I want to say that Earthwatch did a great job in describing what was needed. I was well prepared with the recommended gear and worked harder during my workouts in anticipation of the physical requirements, but I don't think anyone can prep you for the mental stress of living every moment in a vacuum for 2 weeks with a dozen strangers, working in the pouring rain on slopes steep enough to start the adrenaline pumping, and the bouts of home sickness that would hit as you went to sleep each night. There were some days where the signs were visible on everyone's faces, where it wouldn't take much to send each one of us over the edge, both literally and figuratively. But I wouldn't trade those moments for anything. It's in those times where you learn the most about yourself and the others around you. We formed new friendships in a very short amount of time because everyone was being their true selves and couldn't keep up the facade that we all put up for people we don't know well. In the end we all made it, we all learned about our mental and physical limits and how to push through them, and now we are all stronger for it. This is something that I simply could not experience in my world of information technology at the Starbucks Support Center.

Once you go through that inner transformation, you have more mental clarity and are able to better see the world around you. Observing the world that the coffee farmers live in, the challenges they face trying to balance between sustainability and profitability where the standard of living continues to rise, you develop an immense respect for what they do and the intense pride they exude for their farms and country.

Some people may go home and make life changing decisions about their lives because of this expedition, while others will simply make small but meaningful changes to better themselves and the world we live in. I don't believe anyone will simply return to the status quo. We've experienced what sustainability really means at the source, and I hope we can all teach that to others and improve the lives and ecosystems around us in even the smallest way.

Costa Rica left an imprint on every one of us. I can't look at one of the 500 photos that I brought back without taking a deep breath and feeling a sense of peace. I can't sip a cup of coffee without thinking about where those tiny beans came from and if I might have counted one of the trees. I know that this is a place that I will return too as often as possible and when I do, I know that there are warm and welcoming people waiting to say hello at the local market.

Thank you Starbucks, Earthwatch, Costa Rica, and all my new friends.

- Matt