So I feel as though my journal-writing has been seriously lacking, but I have a great excuse for that: spring has arrived in Paris, and my sitting in front of my laptop is probably the last place in the world that I want to be.
The weather's been lovely the last few weeks, and we FINALLY started daylight savings, so the days are long as well. Arianna and I are taking the initiative and introducing picnics into our lives as well as the lives of our friends, and it's been wildly successful. Assuming the weather holds out, we're planning on picnicking every Tuesday afternoon at a different park (side-note: I originally spelled park with a c instead of a k and stared at it for about 5 minutes wondering why firefox was insisting it was a misspelled word, heh) or place around the city.
Speaking of places. I discovered the Place des Vosges recently. Now that I've been there I feel kind of stupid for not having gone before. I don't even have a reasonable, substantial excuse for not ever have gone, seeing as I live a mere three blocks from the place. But my inexcusable laziness aside, I have now visited the place twice, and it is quickly becoming one of my favorite spots in Paris. Having already spent some time in the Place Dauphine for my Cities and States class, I can't help but appreciate the significance of the Place des Vosges within the history of Paris.
Now moving on to a more serious topic of discussion: this journal. As some of you may know, this journal/blog/diary/site for rambling, ranting & bitching/whatever you want to call it, is a requirement for the Int'l Study Programs office as part of my study abroad experience. It also serves as a way for everyone back home to keep up with the goings-on in my life in Paris, but it is foremost an obligation. One of the things I am supposed to focus on in my journal entries is comparing Paris to the States. However, as I've now lived in Paris for nearly three months, I've become quite content with my life here. I spend less time comparing my life here in France to my life back home. I spend less time worrying about how I'm fitting in as a Parisian, how well I'm assimilating to their culture. I spend less time wondering if this is the life for me. And ultimately, I think it's a good thing. It doesn't mean that I value my life back in Boston/Delaware/wherever I hang my hat any less, because it's still a huge part of who I am. But the fact of the matter is, this is my life at this point in time.
Differences between my values as an American and French values aren't that glaring anymore because I've learned to adapt. I've always been that way. I go with the flow no matter where I am or whom I am amongst. Differences still exist, but differences exist between everyone, from person-to-person. You can't just categorize an entire group of people and their "values" and compare it to another entire group of people's "values". If I'm not mistaken, that's a form of stereotyping, and that's not cool, man.
I know my life here is different from my life in the States, and when I get back to Boston, I know the realization of just how different these two lives are will hit me like a ton of bricks, but for now, I'm just trying to live in the moment, because time is fleeting, and as my days in Paris dwindle down, I think--I know--I'd prefer to enjoy every aspect of life, every breath, every flower, every sunny day, every baguette, and not focus too much on the differences between the US and France. Comparisons will inevitably emerge in my rants and musings within this journal from this point on, but I'm not going to worry about make a point of throwing them into every journal entry from now on. When all is said and done, and I look back on my time here through this blog, I think that my understanding and interpretations of the differences between my two homes will be evident to me and to anyone who reads this. And if that's not enough for the Study Abroad office? Well, I'm fucked. But I won't worry about that now, I'll worry about that when I get back. Because in this life, I don't let things trivial matters like that consume my life. The fact of the matter is, at this moment, the sun is shining and the sky is blue, and I've already spent too much time inside on my computer. I'm gonna go live my life while I still can. Peace.
