It started with the Eiffel Tower.
Normally people celebrate the first moments of their 21st birthday taking shots or having a party of some sort. For me, none of that happened. Rather, I had a date. A date with the Eiffel Tower. For me, that was the first thing I saw in Paris that made me feel secure about my decision, so I thought I would go one last time to see it. And just like the first time, and the other times in between, it took my breathe away. I went to the stand where I got my first crepe in Paris, got a birthday crepe and a Heineken. I walked to the bridge and just reflected on my time here. I have documented all my experiences, and shared with you my intense adoration and love for this country and especially this city. I came to Paris broken, and when I got my acceptance letter, I was banking on this experience to put me back together. It hasn't just put me back together, it has transformed me in the best ways possible. I now know I want to come back here and teach, so I am continuing French in Chicago to make it happen. I now want to travel to every part of the world and experience all I can. I don't want to live today in yesterday or tomorrow, but rather I want to live for the moment. Paris made me realize that. It's the moments that matter. The moments that make our life worth something.
And now I sit in my naked room, stripped of the pictures of my friends and family, typing this final post, and I wish that I could leave something of myself here so that it is evident I was here. But I have left pieces of me. I signed Oscar Wilde's grave, the tree by Jim Morrison's grave, and the bridge by the Eiffel Tower. I have dined in a castle, been kissed under the Eiffel Tower, danced in an Irish bar, stood in a 2,000 year old building, and done a coffeeshop crawl. But more than that, I have traveled to seven countries, met a ton of people, made some amazing friends, and experienced so many different cultures. It's been a once in a lifetime experience, an experience that I will hold close to me forever.
So as the clock struck midnight, and the light show started, I opened my beer and cheers-ed the Eiffel Tower. I had a view of Sacre Coeur on my left, the Seine River beneath me, and the structure that started it all in front of me. It was truly the perfect 21st birthday moment. I will have the parties with my friends over break and back in Chicago and the dinner with parents, but this moment is something I wouldn't trade for the world. However, I realized that my birthday isn't just today, but it's been happening for the past 3 months.
When the light show ended I began walking to the RER. But before I descended down that staircase I took last look at the Eiffel Tower and thought to myself, "This isn't goodbye. This is I'll see you later."
It ended with the Eiffel Tower.
No comments:
Post a Comment