Say Goodbye Summer

Life Doesn’t Give You The People You Want, It Gives You The People You Need: 

To Love You, To Hate You, To Break You 

& To Make You The Person You Were Meant To Be

Every year, as August fades into September, I ask myself, 

“Where did my Summer go?”

Those hot, endless days and warm nights under the stars seem to pass by as if on fast forward. 

This Summer was quite different from all my other Summers, and as I reflect back on the past three months, I can see it’s beauty, but I can feel how truly life-changing it really was.

Spending my second summer in Italy enabled me many opportunities. Not just to visit beaches and tour ancient ruins, but to grow. 

I’ve never felt so different; so much stronger and independent and wise as I do now. I don’t feel invincible like I did in college, but I feel durable.

Almost as if you could throw any situation my way, and I will somehow work through it.

I am in Italy.  Clearly I spent many nights with my friends, dancing in the sand, eating gelato and taking aperitivos. Those memories dance around in my head like perfect little ballerinas; they represent happiness, friendships, love, and peacefulness. Reflecting on those moments form a long-lasting smile on my face.

But there are moments that throw me into deep reflection; where I shake my head and wonder “What were you doing?” I mean, I got robbed twice in three weeks and had a date with a guy who tried to sleep with me in a park. Then there’s that feeling, that sting in my chest, where I question,“What went wrong?”  I lost a friend, someone very important to me who changed me. And that feeling is the hardest of all.

But, there are moments of accomplishment; I’m becoming profficient in a foreign language and at the same time, teaching another language to a little girl. These accomplishments fill me with pride and contentment. And once again, prove to me that I can do anything I set my mind too.

I was willing to dare when I moved to Rome on my own; and despite a few setbacks, some heartbreaks and a few moments of despair, because I was willing to dare, I can say I succeeded in the Summer of 2011.

Personally. Intellectually. Mentally. And emotionally.

I truly believe these people I experienced the good, the bad and the ugly with this Summer were brought into my life for a reason: to help me grow.

So yes, Giovanni may have treated me like scum, the robbers may have my money and two of my phones, and Mirto may have broken my heart, but Francesca and Vincenzo have given me a chance, Bea has grown to love me, Meggie has become my rock, and Sabrina has become my dear friend.

So after three months of ups and downs, happiness and tears, I can say that I have been broken, and rebuilt, but now I’m stronger, and changed, for the better.

I may be Unforgettable. 

But after this summer, I am stronger. 

I am Unshakable.

No Second Chances

"You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching, 

Love like you'll never be hurt, 

Sing like there's nobody listening, 

And live like it's heaven on earth." 

— William W. Purkey

As we work our way through our own story, we learn many lessons; difficult lessons that harden our hearts and turn us off from the beauty of the world surrounding us. Lessons which form us as we grow. We learn the people who weren’t ever supposed to let us down, let us down. You will have your heart broken and you'll most likely break others' hearts. You'll cry with your best friend because time is flying by, you’ll fight with your best friend, and maybe, you’ll even fall in love with them. 

But time is to precious. So learn to live the time that is given to you.

I vow too take too many pictures, laugh too much, forgive freely, and love like I've never been hurt. Because this life of ours comes with no guarantees, no time outs, no second chances.  

Make a vow to tell someone what they mean to you, even if it hurts. When someone hurts you, tell them off, speak out, stand up for yourself. 

Vow to dance in the sand, and dance in the pouring rain, hold someone's hand, and comfort a friend.  Fall asleep watching the sun come up, stay up late, be a flirt, and smile until your face hurts.  

Don't be afraid to take chances. Don’t be afraid to fall in love. Don’t be afraid to fail.  So keep smiling. Keep trudging forward.

Because to live is rare, most people just exist. 

Ti Voglio Bene!

“So much of me is made from what I learned from you. 

You’ll be with me, like a handprint on my heart.”

It’s true what they say -  friends come and go, but true friends will always be with you, no matter the distance that separates you. I truly believe there is nothing on this earth more prized then true friendship. My heart is warmed by the thought of the beautiful people I have in my life. My friends who can keep me smiling from dusk to dawn and who I care about with all my being.

This weekend I celebrated my 23rd birthday in Italy. The second year I’ve been away from my home, celebrating in a completely different world. But for the second year in a row, I was blessed with the company of amazing people. 

Thursday evening, Francesca, Vincenzo and Bea surprised me with a dinner in Rome. I was completely taken a back. Dinner in Rome, eating, drinking and enjoying each other’s company. I missed my family back home, but they made me feel so welcome - they filled a void in my heart.

This weekend, I returned to a place that stole my heart the moment I stepped off the train last June. I returned to Reggio Calabria to celebrate and visit friends of mine who have remained so close to me! 

I can’t find the words to express the joy I felt being surrounded by people I care about and who truly care about me. It was a little slice of heaven visiting Reggio...Sottozero for breakfast with Andrea, visiting two of my favorite beaches, Scilla and Anna, sharing an enormous gelato with Saso, taking a walk on the marina with Angela and company, dancing on the beach at the disco and jumping in the water in my birthday dress with Andrea and Dario. The moments are captured in my heart and mind, and of course, the pictures help too.

I hated hoping on the train in Reggio Sunday night, looking at all of my friends waving goodbye. There was something special about them walking us to the train, a type of gesture that was so small, but meant so much - a type of love you experience when you truly have formed friendships that will last a lifetime.

There’s that famouns Blink-182 song with the line ‘...Nobody loves you when you’re 23...” - maybe I’m not in love, and won’t find love this year, but, I can say with complete confidence that I will be loved at 23, and my friends proved that to this weekend.  Ti Voglio Bene

<3

San Vito lo Capo - Sicilia

"You may have the universe if I may have Italy." --Giuseppe Verdi

I’m one of the lucky ones. I’ve been able to travel all over Italy; experience beautiful, enchanted cities, breathtakng beaches, climb mountains and explore Ancient Rome. But after spending a week on vacation with my Italian family in Sicily, at San Vito lo Capo, I can easily say no matter how much of Italy I have seen, it never ceases to amaze me! Our home was on the Mediterranean, I could walk down the steps, and be on the beach with two hops, one skip and a jump. Meggie and I drove through the mountains, down the coast where we visited Palermo and Capo d'Orlando. We swam in the warmest, and bluest of waters, and took in some amazing sunsets. 

I sometimes wonder if God spent extra time creating Italy and all of it's beauty...