A Month in France!

I cannot believe I have been here for a month! Sometimes it seems like it has passed by in a minute, and sometimes I feel like I've already been here forever. This is home, but with adventures around every corner. There's something new to learn, to try, to taste, every single day. The trees refuse to turn, and I'm learning that even though it's dark out, you still need to get up for school. My host family is evolving into my family, and the word "host" ceases to exist in my vocabulary. I have 3 brothers and 2 sisters, and every day I get to know them a bit better than before. I'm coming to know this city better, taking the bus and the metro (by myself!) to get where I need to be. My French is improving, my English is worsening, and my sign language is superb. My showers are shorter, and there's such a thing as "second day hair". Dinner is at 8:30, and can last until 10, and the whole family is there, always. The clocks run for 24 hours, instead of starting over once they hit 12.  The weather can't make up it's mind, and today it's raining even though the sun is shining! Sometimes I sit on my window's ledge, looking out over Parliament and the Opèra and the old buildings that line up across the city, and I can't wrap my head around the fact that I am in France. I get hit with this incredible feeling of awe, and it's so difficult to explain the fullness of my heart. I am so grateful for this amazing opportunity, and I am so, so excited for the next 8 months!

©Teresa Chappell

I quite like these girls.

And if this is what the next 8 months look like, I love the view.