Long before Instagram and WhatsApp, I was a 20-year old college Junior looking for adventure when I came across an amazing opportunity that would alter my path in more ways than one. From as far back as I can remember, I always wanted to see Paris. I may not have known how I would get there, but I ALWAYS knew that I WOULD get there.
As a 7-year old, I enrolled as the youngest student in my summer French class at a community college, adopted the name Therese and instantly fell in love with French culture. I remember sitting at a table for one at 10-years old after venturing over to Disney World’s version of France and taking in all the rich flavors of what I thought at the time was superb French cuisine (hey, what did I know). Minnie who? Goofy what?
At 20 years old, exploring Paris
In middle school, I pleaded my case for having a family trip to Montreal, Canada only to be out voted and swept off to Toronto. High school left me hanging on to my French teacher’s every word as he shared his adventures of studying abroad in Paris. (Qu’est-ce qui s’est passe Mr. Peters???) I even plotted with one of my closest childhood friends to stay at her parent’s home in Puerto Rico and island hop to the French West Indies during the summer before starting college. A burning zeal only to be squashed by my university requiring me to participate in a pre-college program.
Imagine my excitement when I found out that my university had a study abroad program in France. While finding out that their program was 5 hours south of my beloved Paris didn’t leave me feeling defeated, I definitely had to regroup and revise what I thought was a solid approach. During my internet search for alternative study abroad programs I came across an independent organization that was affiliated with La Sorbonne in Paris. The first student at my university to pitch the idea of studying abroad at a non-affiliated institution, I had to sell the idea to the Dean of the University and the head of the University’s Liberal Arts program. I not only came out of that meeting with a written letter of approval, but a $10,000 check from the Bursar’s office to apply to my tuition abroad. The approval process delayed my arrival in France by a week, but I did not let that deter me from quickly acclimating myself with my peers and my home away from home for the next 6 months. While I found the subway easier than the bus for finally navigating the picturesque city that I spent SO many years dreaming of, I often found myself strolling from one corner of the city to the other eagerly taking in all of the small shops, losing myself in the beautiful gardens and becoming one with the narrow streets that were at my feet to explore. I have been to Paris dozens of times since that first spring/summer, but I will never forget my initial introduction to the City of Lights and the life lessons that were reinforced on my journey.
Trust the process
Every adventure requires a first step
My determination is bigger than my obstacles
When you give yourself permission to leverage the resources that you do have to make your dreams come true, what you don’t have shrinks in comparison
Be intentional in your actions
“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
My student ID while studying abroad in Paris