Monday, September 10, 2012

La Premiere

"Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild precious life?" -Mary Oliver


3 days from my move to Paris and my life seems both planned (okay, relatively) and wild.  At this point, mainly wild. 

I am moving to Paris via a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship. I will study at the Sorbonne, obtaining my masters in French Literature and Language (quite a leap for this biochem major!) in hopes to one day be a bilingual doctor with a true global citizenship. Following this year, I will move to Washington, DC to attend Medical School at George Washington University. I must say it is odd to go from this time last year not knowing two weeks in advance to now knowing my next 5 years. It still remains strange to speak or type some of this, as both of these opportunities are, excuse the cliché, dreams come true.  

In response to the quote above, I must say this is  what I have always (post-high school Smitty years) planned to do, and it is made possible through the Rotary Foundation. I am proud to represent Jackson, Mississippi Rotary Club, and Rotary International for this next year--an organization I can only aspire to emulate this year and lifelong. From working relentlessly to eradicate polio globally, to investing in communities locally and around the world, I am excited and eager to represent an institution of such high merit. In my every interaction with Rotary, I have been impressed with their appreciation for learning, cultural awareness, and genuine efforts to promote peace. Check out all Rotary is doing here:  Rotary International 

I will be among scholars from all over the world sent as ambassadors of peace, learning, and goodwill. I will be a scholar in Paris but I will also travel, speaking to various Rotary Clubs around France, on my experience both in the US and France. Thank goodness I worked a tour guide this summer (shout out to Grand Teton National Park!)--I now speak on a mic to strangers with greater ease than I speak to close friends and family, ha

Though my adventure truly begins in 3 days, it has been a long time coming, both in my imagination and logistically. Two weeks ago I traveled with my parents and family friend to Chicago to obtain the coveted long-stay visa--a process I started in May! (see a few pics below) Despite the massive amount of paperwork and packing, these past few weeks at home in preparation (feeling like a college drop out) have turned out to be a great time to catch up with family, my sweet puppy dog, and on sleep.


With the bureaucratic hoops I have to jump through becoming fewer and fewer, I am now begining the daunting task of packing for a year, as well as saying goodbyes to family and friends--oh, and this cozy American life. It feels surreal that this dream of mine will, in a few short days be made a reality.

As a disclaimer I hereby vow to make all subsequent blog posts more exciting (and by location alone, I feel as though that may not be an empty promise!) My hopes for this year are innumberalbe and in some ways inexplicable. Thankfully, these hopes currently out weigh my anxieties about moving across the world for a year, knowing no one and expecting much. New mantra: Fortune favors the bold?!


Until next time!


1 comment:

  1. Anne, enjoy everything you can! You'll make your own memories and have your favorite places. I lived in the Sorbonne neighborhood and spent a lot of time in Jardin du Luxembourg and Rue Mouffetard.

    One recommendation I'll make is visit Le Crocodile bar nearby. I lived across the alley from it. Looks like it's been cleaned up a bit since 1997, when it used to open at midnight, have all the windows covered, the drink prices were francs based on the number of years since WW2, and a large dog walked around inside. Here are some links:
    http://intransit.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/27/a-crocodile-in-paris/
    http://www.worldsbestbars.com/france/paris/st-germain-and-the-latin-quarter/le-crocodile

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