Back in the USA

I can’t believe it’s all over. It’s been 2 months since I’ve returned to the United States, and I feel like my mindset is still in French mode. When I first returned home, all I could do was replay the final moments I had spent in Orléans- waking up on Provi’s air mattress well before sunrise and preparing to go to the train station with Cristina. The moments before that, saying goodbye to Mathieu, to Nadia, Suzanne, Alex, and the other foyer kids. The days before had been full of goodbyes- not just to people, but to my little studio flat, to the Saturday morning river market, to the Loire. When walking along the river banks about a week before I left, I came across two teachers who worked in schools where I taught. Both of them expressed interest in seeing me return to the schools to see the children before I left for the States, but since those last few days were so jam-packed with packing, saying goodbye to everyone else, and handling administrative work, it just wasn’t possible.

(Re)inception

We’re going to ignore the fact that I haven’t written in over 6 months, and I’m going to just jump right in here. I’m on summer holiday, and I’ve finally graduated from university! It’s such a relief. My diploma is framed downstairs above the piano, my cap and gown is in my closet, and my future is patiently waiting ahead of me. I’m going to teach abroad for a year, and then I plan to do research. I’m applying for the Fulbright, an ambitious goal, but it’s the only grant that I’m aware of that will let me study the material that I wrote my senior thesis on and provide me with the financial means to do so.

where the hell did november come from?

Is it just me, or did November creep up on us mad fast? I swear, time just keeps blasting ahead. Before I know it, I’ll be a menopausal middle-aged women with false teeth and three whiny high school kids. But I digress.