on two years

 two years ago today, I set foot in this country with no home, no friends, and no grasp of the culture and language. I was a little bit excited, somewhat scared and almost confused to find myself in completely new surroundings. The photo above is the first photo we took after arriving in Germany. I'm not even sure why we took it, as it's not exactly a picturesque location. We are smiling, but I can assure you, we were freaking out. 

Moving across the world without proper plans is a really tough thing to do. There were more tears and frustration than I could have expected, our fear and uncertainty often getting the better of us. But today, as I reflect on the past two years, I don't want to talk about the negative. 

Instead I want to focus on where we've come. When I look at this photo I see two people who don't yet know how hard they're going to have to work to re-build a community for themselves, to find their place, and to feel at home. But the truth is, we did it. The truth is that two years later, I feel at home here. The truth is that I can now admit, I would be sad to have to pack up and leave. 

Because this is where we are meant to be. I know this is true when Waldi gets home from class and can't stop talking about what he's learning. I know it's true when we have friends over for meals and talk late into the night (in GERMAN, I should add...) because our conversation is that good. I know it's true when we have the opportunity to work towards a better world together with people we've met in this city, to make a difference in the place where we are- even if at first, I didn't really want to be here. 

And today, I mostly just feel thankful. For every person who's made our life here a little bit easier, who's made us feel a bit more at home. For the place we find ourselves in, our jobs, school and community that fill us up with life. 

And of course, to those two very scared, very brave individuals in the photo above. For all the hard work, the mistakes made and lessons learned that brought us to where we are today. 

Bring on the next two years.