Finally have a chance to check in. I have to admit, looking at previous posts while being in Greece, it didn’t hit me until now how much I’ve done the past nine months. I made my big move to the west coast almost a year ago, and even though I’ve moved back home since then, I really haven’t been in New York much. I began the year in Portland, with a week in Louisiana a few months later, and now two months in Greece. Even though this was definitely not how I imagined things would play out, I was lucky to get out and explore this year because if I was still in Portland, none of these trips would have happened. Life would be so different, so I’m becoming appreciative for this free time.
I just wanna stress that everyone has their own direction and their own life. Nobody has the same results even if they follow the same footsteps which is what makes life exciting. It’s easy to be envious of what other people have, but at the end of the day you have control of yourself to make certain moves whether fate works with you or not.
It’s these life lessons I’m slowly learning after conversations with various folk.
(The home where my father grew up visiting his uncle and his family. Now abandoned and untouched for years.)
This trip has been a chance for me to reconnect and learn about my roots. Looking at my own parents and the moves they made reminds me that life does take twists and turns. Troubles finding employment led my mother to take a six month pause from New York and visit Greece to reconnect with her relatives while taking a mental break from the job search. Within the six months, she met my father whom she’s still with today. Who’da’thunk’it that would have happened.
My dad relocated, worked hard in every job you can imagine while not knowing English, eventually bought his own business, and after 31 years in the country he finally became an American citizen. This vacation to Crete was long overdue as he hasn’t been to here in 27 years. It’s been interesting to learn about the place in which he grew up and how everyone’s reaction is when he speaks about his life in America. No one imagined him leaving in the first place, but circumstances brought him to where he is today and it’s fascinating listening to those “catch-up” conversations.
It goes to show that life is unexpected and you’re just on a ride. As hard as you work to control the direction you want to go in, it still doesn’t even turn out the way you plan. I personally feel that we can control only so much while fate handles the rest.
So even though I’ve had an unexpected year full of more downs than ups, I’ve had all the time I needed to explore outside my familiar zone, and I’m starting to crave a schedule. I have about two more weeks in Greece, and as sad as I will be to go back home and leave developing family relationships behind, I will be happy to have these memories and I’m looking forward to get back on a track for the kind of career I am working towards.
(The water my father and his brothers swam in. Obviously this platform is different than what he remembers as the city grew and changed over the span of 20+ years.)
I apologize for the lack of Crete that is spoken of in this post. Believe me, I will have more to say because I’ve taken so many photos I plan on sharing. I was just eager to share my version of Life Is Full Of Twists: 101 since I’m slowly developing a plan of attack as soon as I arrive back home; my gut tells me a new chapter in my life will begin very soon.
As my favorite mister, Bryan Adams, sings: Don’t give up, don’t look back. There’s a silver linin’, it’s out there somewhere. 🎶
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