Normalcy

I never would have thought that holding a plane ticket to Rome would feel like holding a place ticket home. Every weekend I get the amazing opportunity to explore a new city and every Sunday morning I can’t wait to be back home. Which is Rome. How crazy is that!?

I say Ciao, Si and Grazie in every country I go to instead of Hi, Yes and Thank You. I could walk the 913 bus route with my eyes closed. I am now the one that forgets about giving others personal space instead of just being the one not receiving it.

There is such a routine here now. But not an every day, hourly routine. Every day is still incredibly different. But now, that’s what is routine. Every day I wake up having no idea what the day’s challenges will be. Every night I reflect on the crazy experience I had trying to speak Italian or the cool new piazza I found. Every day I am put out of my comfort zone. Every day I try something new. That is the kind of normalcy I hope to hold on to for a very long time.

I never thought it would feel normal to travel to a new country every weekend. But, every Thursday  night I pack my small NorthFace backpack with similar items that I packed last weekend. I print out my boarding pass and feel normal every Friday morning waking up early, battling the inefficient public transportation and flying to a new country.

Every weekend it is normal to feel completely lost in a new country on a Friday afternoon and then be able to give directions to others by Sunday morning. How has this become normal in just 9 weeks? I have no explanation, but I know I’m going to be sad when it’s gone.

It feels normal to only have wifi twice a day, or even go all day without checking my phone. It’s been so refreshing and is something I want to carry back with me to America.

Everything that was so hard just a few weeks ago is now so normal. I can’t even imagine how this normalcy will change again in the next six weeks. But, I also can’t wait to find out.