Thursday, January 25, 2018

New Look, New Life

     We landed back in the US 12 days ago and this is the first blogpost I've put up since we arrived. I had to change the photo header and the description to sit our current surroundings and I figured why not change the color layout as well! Change is good. Keeps things fresh. Right?!
Fortunately the trip was uneventful and we got all of our luggage home without incident. We had a quick stopover at Heathrow airport in London where we were able to pick up egg salad sandwiches and notice the embarrassing headlines regarding the US.  Lovely, NOT.
     It is always nice to land in warmth and bright sunshine, but in the dead of winter, it's especially nice. Our departure from Paris was laced with tears and laughs and the joy of savouring a year of pure delight. The American Church in Paris will always hold a place of high regard in our lives and the memories of our life there will remain bold and impressionable. We're soaking up the podcasts and keeping up on what's happening through the website and contact with colleagues. We miss our dear colleagues, the students we worked with and the joy of Sunday worship services that always inspired. But it's also pretty wonderful to be back in the home that we have built, in an area that we love. It's amazing that even 4-5 years down the road from my parents' passing, when I return to this area, I miss them. I wish they were here. That feeling returned once again as we pulled into our town. We remain thankful that my cousins live nearby. They provide us with a sense of family that is otherwise void for us in this area. They helped us out tremendously in the months that we were gone and we are forever grateful for their willingness to watch over our house and take care of our mail and any number of other details that come up when you live abroad. Thank you Mike and Susan!
     Coming back this time we have a few more friends in the area and it's been wonderful to have people greet us and welcome us back. We were invited to a retirement for a friend and many of the folks that we enjoy playing golf with and hanging with were there. What fun to be welcomed back. We had to laugh a bit as the party started at 5.30 and was pretty much over by 9.00. We are not in Paris anymore where nothing ever got going much before 8.00! Life here consists of early nights and early mornings.
     We started playing golf and returned to our water aerobics class pretty much right away. The water exercise is the best I've had for the issues related to my hip and back and I'm thankful for the opportunity to swim and sit in the jacuzzi. Water is healing! Picking grapefruit, lemons and limes, squeezing juice daily, and using them in my cooking is awesome. It never ceases to amaze me that we have this out our back door.
     The garden looked pretty good although was a bit ragged in places. Doug has worked hard to get it looking good again. The house was in good shape but of course, there's too much stuff and lots of disorganization so as we've unpacked we've tried to re-organize a bit. Always feels good to have a clean start.
     I love my kitchen, the big sink, the gas stove and the large island. We love having our outdoor grill. And we've traded fresh baguettes for fresh tortillas. So far I don't miss it too much! I do miss the French grocery store, the beautiful food and ease with which food termed gourmet here in the US was just readily available. I did find my favorite cheese at Trader Joe's so when I really need a fix, I can splurge. 
     I love driving my car but I hate that I have to drive everywhere! No walking to the neighborhood store to pick something up. We loved watching the Minnesota Vikings and their miracle finish against the Saints, only to suffer the disappointment of getting trounced in the NFC championship game. We love our big TV and our comfortable and beautiful living room. We went shopping at outlets yesterday and found great deals on nice clothes and stopped to eat at In-n-Out on the way home. We've met friends for Happy Hour. We've sat on the patio and taken in the starry sky.
     Trump's America is as disgusting to me as ever and I just want to renounce all support of this man from the far right conservative evangelical leaders. He does not get a 'mulligan' on his moral failures. He continues to articulate a racist point of view of minority people and wants to dismantle so many good things in this nation. Those who support him seem to be able to give him a pass in return for the returns they are seeing in their stock investments. This represents a moral failure of catastrophic proportions. Who is looking out for the vulnerable and the weak? I'm quite sure that people's giving percentage has not increased with the increase in their portfolios and that is why trickle down economics do not work. The trickle just dries up as soon as the flow of money comes into the fat cats pockets. Sorry, just needed to be clear about where I stand, in case that was in question!
     We miss people. Always. But I love the sunshine. Love the recreational opportunities that are now at our fingertips. Love seeing folks who we haven't seen for a long time. Love being back in the US time zone, having phone conversations with Doug's mom on a regular basis and connecting with friends.
     Right now, it feels like we are on vacation so our life is kind of resembling that. Eventually we'll have to figure out what we want to be doing with our time. I need to work on my project for the Louisville Institute so plan to get that going pretty soon. We need/want to find a church that we can enjoy and volunteer with. We'd like to learn more about what other volunteer opportunities/needs there are here in the Coachella Valley and figure out where we might be useful. In the meantime, we are enjoying our life here. We are thankful for another season of sabbatical as we adjust to life in the US, ponder when our next trip back to Europe might be and in what capacity and enjoy the joy and beauty of each new day here in desert.
Taken this morning, just as I finished up the blog

Friday, January 12, 2018

Au Revoir Paris: Until We Meet Again

It's our last full day in Paris after 10 months of living here. We fly out tomorrow morning and will sleep in our own home in Desert Hot Springs tomorrow night. That is such a weird thought. For sure, this has been a year of unexpected pleasure, challenge and meaningful interactions. The American Church in Paris has been a place of growth and joy and even after such a short time, feels very much like a church home, one that we will long to return to in the coming years. There is no doubt that we will miss the worship services and seeing the students who have burrowed deeply into our hearts on a regular basis. We will remain curious about how they will develop and where their lives will take them. We will miss our colleagues who have invited us into this staff in the most affirming and inclusive manner. The church is clearly what has made our time here so special and all of the wonderful people that we've been privileged to know but of course, the backdrop of Paris, added rich dimensions that are worthy of reflection. So here's a bit of a review of the past 10 months.
What I Will Miss The Most:
French Butter. I know, bizarre. But it is better. And the stuff with salt crystals in it is beyond delicious. I am packing a kilo to bring home in my suitcase.
Walking and Wandering. Paris is by far the most fun city to wander around. Lurking around every corner is a beautiful building, an inviting bistro beckoning one to sit and watch the world go by, and beautiful parks and green spaces that urge people to stop and enjoy the surroundings. 
Lifestyle on Foot. While I am excited to drive our car again, I will miss being able to walk to the store, walk to our bakery, walk to go out to lunch, etc.
Public Transportation. Having a car is great for many things but it's also awesome to have the option of avoiding car use when you so desire, like when you go out to dinner and want to have a drink, or don't want to fight traffic or have to find a place to park.
Easy Travel to Beautiful Places. France has dazzled me this year. In short amounts of time from Paris we've been to the mountains and the coast, surrounded by vineyards and taken in amazing views. It's all fantastically lovely and I will miss having it all at fingertips.
Our Local Bakery. They tolerated my inability to speak French, they helped me navigate the choices, they were kind and lovely to me. Buying a freshly baked baguette for about a $1.50, biting off the end as I walked home, slathering it with the above mentioned French butter...the only good thing that could come out of this is that all bread in the US will now taste bad and so I'll be able to cut back on carbs!
Randomly Seeing the Iconic Monuments of Paris. I love that I've seen the Eiffel Tower most days. I will miss spotting the gold dome of Invalides knowing my home and church were just down the street. I will miss seeing Sacre Coeur from random places in the city and the little thrill that came with seeing it each time I did. The bridges that crossed the Seine, Notre Dame, The Louvre and the d'Orsay museums...all spectacular buildings that I never wearied of seeing.
The Food. Restaurant favorites, outdoor markets and the good ol' grocery store will be missed. The food here is just so darn good. It's fresh, it's carefully made and prepared and it's has ruined my palette in a good way.

Cheap, Good Wine. Available in the grocery store. All the time.
Living in A Country with A Sane Leader. No commentary needed. Emmanuel Macron makes me proud. The other one...not so much.

Of course, there is so much more. But these things do stand out. But alas, lest you think living in Paris is perfect there are some things that I won't miss and definitely some things that I am looking forward to in returning to the US.

What I Won't Miss
Not Knowing the Language. I have never lived in a country where I didn't learn the language and this has been tough. I have picked up a fair amount of French vocabulary but having not really studied the language with any degree of seriousness, I don't know how to conjugate verbs or put together a cohesive sentence. Well, that's not entirely true. I did master Je ne parle pas français perfectly. The best I did was learn to read a menu, which proved to be very helpful.
Limited Recreational Options. One of the things I am most looking forward to are the recreational opportunities that CA offers to us. Access to water we can swim in is one of those things. Having tennis and golf in our backyard. And lots and lots of sunshine. Paris is crushingly gray this time of year and I'm ready for a bit more warmth and sunshine.
Living in An Apartment. While I have greatly appreciated the wonderful accommodation that ACP has provided for us, I am excited about living in my house again. Our house is still relatively new to us and we are excited to enjoy the large yard, eating outside, my big beautiful kitchen, gas stove, outdoor grill, king size bed, robotic vacuum, and having all of my favorite things at my finger tips.
We've embraced our life in Paris with vigor and joy. And we've been the grateful recipients of incredible experiences that we will treasure for a life time. But our job here is now finished and it's time for us to return to CA. We will miss many things and welcome other things. We will long for our life in Paris at times even while revelling in the CA lifestyle that we also enjoy. We're thankful for it all and I suppose in our hearts, kind of know that we'll see Paris again one day.
So we join Rick from Casablanca, and thousands who have gone before us, in saying, "We'll always have Paris."