Just Some Thoughts and Poitiers

When I studied in Lyon, the same thing happened to me.  It is a sort of cycle that I went through when I was living in a different country.  It seems like the thrill and sheer excitement of being in a new place has dwindled a little bit and the time I have to reflect by myself makes it difficult because I miss my friends and family so much.  Email, Gchat, Facebook, Skype.  All these are great but they do not have the same effect and enjoyment as an interaction with a person.  When you interact with other people it is their personality, their feelings, their emotions that tend to greatly influence that interaction.  While they are not completely lost in the online forms of communication, I believe that a significant portion of them are lost.  The expression actions speak louder than words comes in to play here.  It is those actions, maybe more so those interactions, that I miss most.  Yes, I interact with children on a weekly basis.  Yes, I interact with the cashier at the grocery store and the bus driver on a weekly basis.  Yes, I interact with my co-workers and the other assistants on a weekly basis.  But I don't interact with any of them on the same level that I was accustomed to before I came to France.  Now, before I go on I would like to point out that I am not faulting any of these people or circumstances without taking any blame myself.  I do ask myself, is this something that I can change?  Is this something that I need to be proactive about?  More importantly, is this just something that I am learning about myself?  My whole life I have been so fortunate to be given the opportunities I have had, but maybe this is what being in the real world means.  It takes time, patience, and a positive attitude to adjust, but that is much easier said than done especially in a world, a country, and a way of life that you are not completely accustomed to.  I decided to come here, because I felt like it was the right decision for me.  I do not regret it one bit, but 7 months is a long time to be away from home and I am realizing that with all the highs come lows as well.  Don't get me wrong, I am not dreading the next 6 months.  It is just sometimes difficult to be out of your comfort zone, especially when it is rather comfortable there and the interactions come so naturally and genuinely.

On a lighter note, I visited Poitiers today for my doctor;s appointment and got my VISA verified.  I have now officially been cleared by customs and am a legal temporary worker in France.  The churches in Poitiers were very old and they were very impressive. One of the churches was an UNESCO World Heritage sight!