I Never Want to Leave

As of July 19th, I've officially lived in Germany for two years. Unfortunately, we were just told that we're moving- soon!- back to the States. Boo. Don't get me wrong, it'll be great to be closer to family and friends, living in the land of pay-at-the-pump gas stations and good Mexican food, but I've loved living in Germany.

Loved the landscape, loved my apartment, loved my new friends, loved my job, loved the opportunities to travel, loved my landlords, loved the weather, loved almost everything about it. I've even loved the parts that msot people don't: stores being closed on Sundays (forces you to stay home and relax) and living in the middle of nowhere (the rolling hills and pastures remind me of my childhood in Iowa).

Me at Himmerod Abbey, the first month I was here.

Me in Vienna, last month. 

Moving is stressful, and I hate doing so every few years. I'm looking forward to the adventures that are ahead of us, but I'm scared of certain things. Scared that I lose hold of the simple things that are front and center in my life here.

We weren't supposed to leave Europe until May of next year, and I looked forward to one more season of Christmas markets, one more December with snowy mornings at the Burg, one more New Year's Eve in Europe. Like they say, though, 'tis better to have lived in German and left than never to have lived there at all.

That is how the saying goes, right?