I am yearning, aching, longing for Paris in a way that I never have before. Time is passing oh so quickly and I can't believe it's been nearly 4 months since I left France. Friends and family in Paris carry on about their business, with new au pairs and new friends and new experiences..and I am here. Not knowing where I will be next year, much less next month. But mostly, as the seasons change and the lights begin to go up on the Champs Élysées, the tree decorated this year with Swarovski crystals is standing in the middle of the majestic Galeries Lafayette, Père Noël is found peeking around every street corner and the tree outside Notre-Dame Cathedral is sparkling with tinsel and twinkle lights I am left feeling empty and as if I'm missing out on everything. Wishing I could climb to the top of the Arc de Triomphe and look at the Christmas lights at night, enjoy Angelina's chocolat chaud in the chill of the afternoon sunlight, and bounce home to rue de Courcelles every night with my scarf tightly wrapped around my face as the brightly lit blue and white "C's" strung across one of the longest streets in Paris sparkle in the darkness.
I was reading my Thanksgiving posts from last year and the previous year which brought tears to my eyes. Last year was one of the most special and memorable Thanksgivings I have ever had. Don't get me wrong, Thanksgivings with my family are special and I love sitting around the table sharing love and being thankful and eating mounds upon mounds of delicious food. But preparing Thanksgiving last year for my friends from 4 different countries, in another country, in my host family's apartment in PARIS, with my little French sidekick running around flirting with Taylor...there was something so memorable, so extraordinary, so impressive about our spread. It was ours. It was unforgettable.
From November 24, 2011..my second Thanksgiving in Paris:
"It certainly beats last years Thanksgiving at McDonalds. Today, I was surrounded by friends from every corner of the world, in my families' Parisian apartment, playing the "game" as they called it of what we were thankful for. And what we all had in common? Our realization that this opportunity we all have to live and work here in Paris, and have the experiences and chances and being able to have the world at our fingertips is unlike any other. I am thankful first and foremost for the best family and friends any girl could ever ask for back in the States, whom I miss dearly and I would have given anything to have them seated around me at the table. Secondly, to my precious host family in Paris who have included me as one of their own and trust and cherish the relationship we have with one another. And, I am thankful for being able to spend another month in France. For my visa not being instantly denied so that I can still eat world class croissants, marvel at the intricacies of the Sacre-Coeur, and to be able to sit around the Eiffel Tower with a bottle of Pinot Noir a little while longer."
As I get ready to celebrate this Thanksgiving with my family in Lawrenceburg, lunch at my mom's..dinner at dad's...I am thankful to be able to sit down with my close family and celebrate being home, being together, and each other's company. I love my family more than anything in this world. They know it, and I know it.
There is no other place I'd rather be today with them, unless, of course, we could all be in Paris.
From November 24, 2011..my second Thanksgiving in Paris:
"It certainly beats last years Thanksgiving at McDonalds. Today, I was surrounded by friends from every corner of the world, in my families' Parisian apartment, playing the "game" as they called it of what we were thankful for. And what we all had in common? Our realization that this opportunity we all have to live and work here in Paris, and have the experiences and chances and being able to have the world at our fingertips is unlike any other. I am thankful first and foremost for the best family and friends any girl could ever ask for back in the States, whom I miss dearly and I would have given anything to have them seated around me at the table. Secondly, to my precious host family in Paris who have included me as one of their own and trust and cherish the relationship we have with one another. And, I am thankful for being able to spend another month in France. For my visa not being instantly denied so that I can still eat world class croissants, marvel at the intricacies of the Sacre-Coeur, and to be able to sit around the Eiffel Tower with a bottle of Pinot Noir a little while longer."
As I get ready to celebrate this Thanksgiving with my family in Lawrenceburg, lunch at my mom's..dinner at dad's...I am thankful to be able to sit down with my close family and celebrate being home, being together, and each other's company. I love my family more than anything in this world. They know it, and I know it.
There is no other place I'd rather be today with them, unless, of course, we could all be in Paris.
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