Hold on, to me as we go
As we roll down this unfamiliar road
And although this wave is stringing us along
Just know you’re not alone
Cause i’m going to make this place your home
Settle down, it’ll all be clear
Don’t pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found
Just know you’re not alone
Cause i’m going to make this place your home
Settle down, it’ll all be clear
Don’t pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found
Just know you’re not alone
Cause i’m going to make this place your home
Okay, so as cliche and overplayed as this song is... I love it. And even more so because it explains exactly where I'm at in my life right now and how I should be handling it.
Today I got my official letter from the school I have been assigned to. The town is called Bailén, it is in Jaén province in the Andalucía region. The population is about 18,000 people, so not tiny, but google maps tells me I can walk from one end of town to the other in under 20 minutes ("yeah sure google maps... how fit do you really think I am?"). The city is known for its handcrafted ceramics, wine and olive oil, as well as a battle that occurred there in 1808 against Napoleon and the French army (thank you, Wikipedia, for helping me sound like I know something).
I had thought that this letter would be the key to jumpstarting the rest of the process needed for me to get to Spain. However, after reading it... I was paralyzed. So much to think about all at once. So many questions. Very few answers. Who do I contact now? Where am I going to live there? How in the world am I going to get there? How much do flights cost at such short notice? How soon will my visa be approved? When can I even go get my visa? How soon do I put in my two weeks at work? Is there anyone else from the States living near me? How do I even start packing? etc. etc. etc. All these thoughts, pulling my mind equally in all directions at once, effectively left me frozen in one spot without knowing which way to turn.
Today I got my official letter from the school I have been assigned to. The town is called Bailén, it is in Jaén province in the Andalucía region. The population is about 18,000 people, so not tiny, but google maps tells me I can walk from one end of town to the other in under 20 minutes ("yeah sure google maps... how fit do you really think I am?"). The city is known for its handcrafted ceramics, wine and olive oil, as well as a battle that occurred there in 1808 against Napoleon and the French army (thank you, Wikipedia, for helping me sound like I know something).
I had thought that this letter would be the key to jumpstarting the rest of the process needed for me to get to Spain. However, after reading it... I was paralyzed. So much to think about all at once. So many questions. Very few answers. Who do I contact now? Where am I going to live there? How in the world am I going to get there? How much do flights cost at such short notice? How soon will my visa be approved? When can I even go get my visa? How soon do I put in my two weeks at work? Is there anyone else from the States living near me? How do I even start packing? etc. etc. etc. All these thoughts, pulling my mind equally in all directions at once, effectively left me frozen in one spot without knowing which way to turn.
And then the song came on the radio... like a sign from God himself.
"Settle down.... it'll all be clear... I'm gonna make this place your home."
It was beautiful. Every word I needed to hear. Granted, I wasn't immediately unfrozen, I still had a million questions and very few answers. But, this sudden, perfectly timed reminder gave me the solution to start, however slowly, to deal with it all.
"As we roll down this unfamiliar road... Just know you're not alone."
Oh, {we} totally got this. :D
Today we will work through every single one of those questions!! Enjoy the state of shock... it isn't often in life that we get to experience something like the receiving of that letter. It reminds us that we are alive and in charge of our destiny (mind you, I didn't say "destination") while challenging our strength and independence!
ReplyDeleteThe answers to all those overwhelming questions mean little in the long run... it will be a whirlwind right now, but in a year you'll be looking around your apartment in Bailén going, "That was AWESOME."
Señorita Horn YOU are the perfect example of why I am not alone in this. Your help (not to mention complete emotional support even through my breakdown moments) throughout this process have already been increíble. You remind me I'm not the first to do this and this is what I'm MEANT to do. Thank you for that :)
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