Life Lately

Cannizaro Park

Life lately has consisted of walks or runs in my favorite park, squeezing in extra time with friends and realizing how much crap we've accumulated over a year. I always say this when I move, but I want to be more of a minimalist, gah!

In 10 days we fly to Chicago and we've already decided to have dinner at Cracker Barrel that night. I guess you could say we're getting our priorities straight. But even though we're super excited to go "home" (which we think will be the Chicago area, but you can never be too sure), leaving England is sad. 

I'll miss my walks up to the Wimbledon Common and through Cannizaro Park. I often have surreal moments there when I feel like I'm walking through Emma's back yard or half expect to see Mr. Darcy come down the path. Those parks have been a sort of haven for me. I'd go when I thought I couldn't stand the city one more second, smell the flowers, listen to the trees and occasionally camp out under a tree until rain passed.

I'll also miss the history here. Every other building reminds me of a time past; I'm always imagining what things were like hundreds or thousands of years ago. I walk passed the site where William Wilberforce's home used to be almost every week, how cool is that? The constant reminder of history has challenged me to read more and has given me more of an appreciation for the classics I was told to read growing up.

I've learned a lot about friendship, what it takes to build them and why they're so so important. I realized I'm an extrovert that's insecure and doesn't trust easily (not a surprising combo) and thankfully, being here's been the perfect environment for a lot of stretching. The people we've come to know and love are truly dear, it's going to be hard to say bye. And I'm not going to lie, I'll miss the countless conversations about our differing accents and Paula Deen's deep-fried cheesecake.

I'll also miss The Lawn Bakery and this handmade ice cream.

Michaela Rae