Paris vas me manque (paris I will miss you)

December 15th:

My train from Lyon to Paris has just left the station. Almost the last of my duties in France finished after giving a short presentation on Earthquake Hazards and sprinkler system protection. Saying by to many of my colleagues, whom I won’t see again before leaving, was a bit sobering. I’ve realized how comfortable I’ve become here in France and am already discovering how much I will cherish the experience of living and working here for the past 7 and a half months.

I leave from Paris, Charles De Gaulle airport Thursday, 21st of December, which is in 6 days and counting. The time has really passed quickly. When I first started writing my e-mails, which became blog postings thanks to Joan Pan, it was a way for me to communicate with my friends and family back in the US and share my “story” of living in Paris. I was also supposed to be here for a full year when I first arrived. And now, like the time frame, the blog postings have also changed in there purpose for me. It has not only become a form of communication with friends and family, but it has also become a way to hold on to some precious memories that I have and will be able to keep for the rest of my life.

I must admit that France has become a place that I could see myself living for a long time. That may be easy for me to say now that I’m leaving, but as much as I’m looking forward to the reunion with my family at Christmas, my heart already aches at the knowledge that I will no longer be able to walk past the boulangerie and pick up a fresh croissant for breakfast on my way to work, and pick up a warm baguette, the kind that melts in your mouth, on my way home from work. I won’t be able to take the long way home and take a pause on one of the bridges passing over the Seine and just watch the tourists and Parisians alike walking past the Notre Dame or down the Quai’s of the Seine with the reflection of the Conciergerie to accompany them. My walks to the grocery store will no longer include the full moon shining over the gothic spires of Notre Dame, or passing the “oldest tree” in Paris. The apartment, house, or building that I end up living in would not have even been an imagination in the 1700’s when my current apartment building was constructed. I will no longer pass under the shadow of the Eiffel Tower on my bike ride out to Versailles or look in at the priceless art of the Louvre as I jog past. The thought of taking a 10 minute walk to have the best cup of chocolate chaud at Le Deux Magot, a brasserie that has been frequented by the likes of Sarte and Hemingway among other French and world thinkers, writers, and artist, will be only that….a thought that can not be realized. These are among only a few of the many daily experiences that have become “normal” and will become memories. It is no wonder that so many étrangers (non-French) have moved to Paris over the years. The city is teaming with culture and beauty, from it’s edifices to its art, from its river to its hills, in the faces of people from probably every country in the world that pass through the streets of Paris every day. A just description is beyond my ability.

I have 1 last weekend here (not counting possibly spending New Years back here) and it’s going to be a full one. A testament to the community of friends I’ve made within this city’s limits. They include people from Estonia, Ireland, England, Australia, Spain, Brazil, Holland, US, Nigeria, Congo, Tanzania, Italy, South Africa, and of course France, among others. It is really amazing to look around at the faces at the bible study in the American Church in Paris, where I counted at least 10 represented countries 2 weeks ago, and the guys on my soccer teams, who are also from all over the world. This weekend I may be having dinner tonight with a friend I meet in line at the prefecture (part of that story covered in June I think) who is getting his MBA here in Paris and is married to a francaisse. I have a soccer game Saturday morning, a party Saturday night were a co-worker from England and his local band will be playing, probably church at 9:30 Sunday at Notre Dame, brunch with a friend from Spain, mini soccer tournament at 1pm and then I hope to relax while packing my apartment to move out Monday afternoon….. It’s going to be a great last weekend in Paris!!

I would like to thank all of you who have supported me during this past 7.5 months through prayers, e-mails, visits, and phone calls!! I have not yet decided what I will do with this blog, but most likely I will be changing the name and it will become more of a general forum for me to share my life, not just in a certain city, but also on a whole level, with all of you. I guess, in a way, it has already become that…..