But of these three goals, the third has had the greatest impact on my life. I worked harder than ever before and it paid off when I had the opportunity to show my paintings for a month alongside another artist in the center of Florence. School was also difficult, as I attended two Universities – one American and one Italian Art University, where I committed to improving my painting technique. In the end, my hard work was rewarded with the incredible feeling of pure mental exhaustion after a full day of communicating in a second language. I just had to go with the flow, laugh at myself, and keep trying. Language without making countless mistakes, subjecting yourself to embarrassing situations, and feeling like the odd man out. Each of these tasks was difficult and took patience and perseverance every day. The first was to come as close to fluent in the Italian language as possible, the second was to finish my college career strong, and the third was to build lasting relationships with new friends so that I could feel like I would always have a home in Italy. Putting myself in awkward, strange, and completely new experiences daily became a fun adventure for me.Īs soon as I arrived in Florence, I set three goals for myself and vowed that I would not leave Italy until I had achieved each one. But I quickly came to welcome that anxious feeling and I began to search for it in small moments of everyday life. I had no idea what to expect, and it was absolutely terrifying packing my bags and leaving everything I’d ever known to start a new life on the other side of the world. I was finally about to embark on the trip I had been working towards since I enrolled in my first Italian language class during my freshman year. When I chose to study abroad in Florence, Italy, for my fifth and final year of college, I was so nervous and excited. It means “I am still learning,” and I like to remind myself of that every day. Over the past few years this Italian phrase has evolved to define my life.
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