I've accepted that there's no way I'll know London like the back of my hand before our time's up. So instead, I've made it my goal to at least know Wimbledon. Perhaps with kiddos in tow someday, I'll point out all the places we sipped coffee, ate dinner and bought groceries. I love the idea of coming back and revisiting all of my favorite places.
We've experienced fish and chips at the family owned diner around the corner, breakfast at Mica Cafe, explored enormous stacks of books at Copperfield's Secondhand Book Shop, bought fruit and veggies at the stand by the Library, had coffee dates at Costa and Caffe Nero, tried all the teas at Pret a Manger and felt sick after eating curry at Ahmed Tandoori.
And there's still so much to see and do. We have yet to catch a show at the Wimbledon Theatre and have Thai at a restaurant I've been eyeing. Today though, I decided to just walk the streets and take it all in - the smells, red roofs and chimneys and city sounds. This is home for me right now and I want to embrace it. I "popped in"(my new British expression) a few stores, bought flowers and sat at my new favorite cafe, Kaldi Coffee. From their cozy upstairs seating I could look across the street at Starbucks. I liked it. Not giving Starbucks business puts a grin on my face. Starbucks is like Fox Books; I prefer the Shop Around the Corner. (You've Got Mail lovers will understand that analogy.)
Wherever we end up, I hope I make as much of an effort to embrace it as I have here. I'm sure it'll become more challenging as life goes on, with work, kids, functions and everything else, but I think it's important. Living like this has made such a difference in how I view time spent. I'm reminded that it's limited and there's much to enjoy and people worth loving, everywhere. It's not just about how many destinations I get to, it's about enjoying what God's put before me.
Michaela Rae
