España
In November of last year my wife and I decided to follow a dream. We decided to leave our jobs, home, family and friends to move to a country were we don't even know the language. "If we're going to do something crazy" the logics goes, "we should probably do it now." No kids yet, no home to sell (although there are plenty of other things we must get rid of) and no reason but fear to keep us here.
Yesterday we took a trip to the airport to pick up the transatlantic tickets we won on eBay and the imminence of our decision began to sink in. The weeks, hours and days are ticking by - soon it will be time to say goodbye to everything I know. I will step on to a cramped airplane, watch a DVD, eat small portions of sub-par food, and wake up in a city slightly larger than Chicago. A city that will be my home.
Today we sorted through closest and cabinets making piles of things to sell, things to give away, and things to pack. As I stared at the piles realizing how much taller the first two were than the last I felt overwhelmed. "Simplify" - it's a mantra that's supposed to lead to a stress-free existence. I realize as I fold and pack, sort and count how much these things own me. How I am worried to leave them behind because somehow they have come to define me.
When I step off that plane with only a few suitcases to my name. When I wake up in a country where every word I learn is a triumph. When I am there and not here I hope I remember that day in November. I hope I remember that this is a dream. A dream I chose to follow and a dream that has come true.