Isn’t it crazy how much a nine-hour flight can change your life? I went from living on a dirt
road to living in the middle of Vienna, Austria, or, in simple terms, I went from cock-a-
doodle-do to yo-del-le-dee-ho. For all of my life, I have lived in the 217, from childhood to
college, I have loved getting to call the midwest my home, but me oh my, how lucky am I
that I get to live right smack dab in the middle of Europe?!
I was taken back this week when I watched a music video that my favorite band put out and
as I listened to the words, I could not shake one particular stanza –
“You got one time to figure it out
One time to twist and one time to shout
One time to think and I say we start now
Sing with me if you know what I‘m talking about.”
This isn’t really new information – of course, we only have one chance to take on this crazy
thing called life, but it reminded me to take in every. single. moment. With every walk I take
comes new sights to see, with new meals come new tastes, with new experiences come new
memories and lessons that will stay with me for a lifetime. So as I take on these next three
and a half months, I hope to embrace them with a sense of adventure and exploration,
because this chance only comes once, so why wait.
—-
You forget when it is raining outside that the sun still shines. Just as we broke through the
