Reflections

What a wonderful weekend it has been! This morning we actually got started at a decent time, and so far we've had a very relaxing time. As I unfortunately learned last weekend, Paris shuts down by 1:00 on Sundays, so we decided to have an easy day in. We quickly went to a cafe for breakfast and to the grocery store to pick up some essentials (dinner and bottles of wine) before everything closed down. Today has been a little dreary, very chilly and windy, but it has kind of set the mood just right. I've been getting homework done while she read. I even took a quick nap where I got to feel the wind rush through my bedroom window and hear the church bells chime. All in all, a very relaxing time

This is unfortunately Carly's last day here with me in Paris. I have had so much fun with her, and we were very lucky the timing of our trips worked out so perfectly. This afternoon we started going through old high school photos and just laughing at how ridiculous we looked! Spirit dress up days, homecoming, birthday parties, and just photos where we wanted simply to be silly. But in every single one, we looked so happy. I started to think about that a lot, and while I'm so thankful for the time we spent together the past couple of days making new memories, I'm even thankful still for the old memories that seem so long ago. It made me think about why I love taking pictures so much. I get criticized for not living in the moment when I constantly am pulling out my camera, but in the end, I have wonderful visible proof of incredible experiences. Maybe that's why I enjoy writing this blog so much too. I know that after this is all done, I will be able to account for my feelings, experiences, and funny little moments that my memory may not hold. Looking at the pictures, we could tell when the smiles were genuine, when they weren't. We recalled friends we haven't thought about in years, and friends who we wish would have kept in contact. For one friend of ours in particular, those pictures are the only connection we feel we can keep with her anymore. It's a sad, but very touching thought.

However, to get back on the brighter side of things, this reflection made me so appreciative of the classes I'm taking where we are encouraged to catalogue all of these things. Once Carly leaves, I think I would like to spend some of my time during the day venturing out on my own, seeing what thoughts can come out of my head and what pictures can come out of my camera. I want to gain as much as I can out of my time here, and I truly want to immerse myself in those moments. I have always been very independent, and after seeing how some of my other class mates prefer to spend their time here, I don't think I can get what I wanted out of Paris with them. (Don't worry Mom, this doesn't mean I will be walking the streets by myself at 2:00 in the morning!) I just need some time to myself to simply be.

As for now, I still have a dinner date in the kitchen with my dear friend. And as soon as I can get my cable to download my pictures from my camera, I will let you see what I see :)