Thoughts from the Midpoint

We have now been in Barcelona for six months, give or take a few days, and have six months, more or less, before we return to Brooklyn.  So I’ve been thinking a lot this week about what I’ve learned, how the experience has changed me, what I hope to keep with me when I do return.

The following are things I have learned, or that this experience has reaffirmed for me. 

1.     Adjusting to a new culture takes a long time, no matter how much you want to be there.  I thought the transition for the kids would be seamless, and that it would take me weeks, not months, to feel grounded.  It was harder than I expected and harder than I wanted it to be, even with all of the wonderful parts.

2.     Everything goes a lot more smoothly when I get at least seven hours of sleep.

3.     I enjoy spending time with my family—and have spent much more time with my husband and kids in this last year than perhaps any previous year.  But if I did not have meaningful work, I would slowly go crazy.  I can sacrifice a lot, but I need to keep the inquisitive, problem-solving, adult thinking part of my brain well-lubricated.

4.     Cooking centers me, and sharing food is my favorite way to spend time with family and friends.  It feels basic, connected, important.

5.     It’s okay to travel to a new city and spend more time in food markets than in museums.  Ditto for sleeping in, or taking a nap midday instead of visiting one more cathedral.  It is a huge relief to travel how I want to travel instead of how I think I should travel.

6.     24/7 access to email may not be the tool of the oppressor (or maybe it is), but it is definitely overrated.  For me, it produces more stress than efficiency.  I am happier and more productive without my crackberrry, and when I move away from the computer to read and write.

7.     Living without a clothes dryer is just not such a big deal.  Hanging clothes out on the line does not take that long, and it is the single most significant thing you can do to decrease your carbon footprint.  Those curly lightbulbs are cute but in the end, they don’t do a helluva lot.

8.     I do miss my bigger fridge and basement freezer.  I like cooking big pots of things and freezing food for later.  We can’t really do that here.

9.     If you need to feel humbled, learn a new language.

10. Listen to your body, and do what it tells you to do.  Rest is underrated.