I signed up for this...best.idea.ever.

One day, many moons ago in my younger days, I was up to my normal antics at Grandma and Grandpa’s house in Florida. It was to me just another day, but for my parents it was the day where someone else finally saw what Mom and Dad had long since known about me. My maternal Grandmother looked at my mother, sighed and declared a state of eternal sympathy…’That one over there is never going to do things the easy way.’

I have since collected a number of family members, friends, school teachers and coaches who would back up my Grandmother’s epiphany that day.

Recently, I may have also joined this camp.

When? You might ask (or really, you might not ask but nevertheless…). It was the day a future colleague asked me if I really wanted to work in the Munich office and not the US office. I answered with a sprightly ‘Of course’ as if such a thing was as routine as brushing my teeth.  

So now I am in my second round of living abroad after a brief stint in Spain. Living in Germany for me is vastly different than Spain because it is for one thing more ‘permanent’ and it’s also a bucket list item for me. One thing I never knew when drafting the proverbial bucket list was how challenging it would be. I could go on and list the million mini challenges I have on a daily basis, but that is not why I write.

The move to Germany has introduced me to a different level of humility and gratitude that will likely forever change me. It is because of this I decide to maintain this pattern of shying away from the obvious and the (personally) easy way of life. **

**Disclaimer – I am not talking about taking on challenges, bull by the horns type of gallantry nor am I declaring the easy way to be safe but rather that the easy way in my past often, if not always, co-presented with the intelligent way, but I digress…..

Here in Munich, I am once again alone today on Thanksgiving, but like the last 2, where by definition that may be true, I am actually surrounded by so many friends here, combined with love and support from a network that now literally spans the world.

It has been this move to Germany, my struggle and the overwhelming response to my serious and comical struggles that I find myself the most thankful on Thanksgiving as I have been in my thirty years.

So this year I am thankful for (in no particular order):

For the person (and actually persons) within arms length when my mobile rings from a German phone number for being my voice.

For the charming cobblestone streets and sidewalks that remind me of the West Village but simultaneously devour the heels of my shoes.

For the Munich train system for being reliably two minutes off. Thank you for being consistent all the while lacking Swiss precision.

For poor dubbing on German television. You lack a level of quality that has made it acceptable to avoid buying a TV thus far and therefore avoided the monthly GEZ tax.

For my work computer and its outperformance of my colleagues computers while I ramp up my German IT vocabulary.

For all of my German teachers, official and unofficial, who speak German to me when I can understand and at me when my face contorts from misunderstanding. Your relentlessness will stick at some point. Your effort and support is appreciated.

For the church bells that mark my laziness on Sundays. With every chime at noon I develop an added amount of willpower to be productive rather than replenish my sleep coffers.

For the German language and its ability to make Germans spell things in English absurdly wrong and elicit a laugh out loud from me.

For the bus stop that reminded me not only of its fortitude, but also that I am not perfect and neither is a seemingly well thought out plan.

For the stairs for always providing a stark reminder in German buildings that I should take the stairs, but marking exactly where I can find the elevator.

For Russ’n and Radlers that allow me to make it to the end of an evening with friends without any major embarrassments or next day headaches.

For trips to IKEA because you know how awful it is to go there when you do not have a car.

For the girl I met on my first day of work that has since served as a translator, German teacher, IT consultant, team member, furniture delivery coordinator, running mate and friend.

For Steve Jobs and the Apple team for creating the iPad that allows me to talk to my family frequently. With an iPad my mother can wash the dishes while narrating the days events, update me on the rest of the family and listen to me when I am just a girl that needs her mother…all while my father walks back and forth mumbling something witty or barking out reminders….and occasionally flashing his toothy grin.

For my old friends that speak to me in English when I can speak neither English nor German. For answering the phone when I call, emailing me when my schedule is too busy, posting on Facebook about drama stateside or beyond and for enduring friendships regardless of the distance between us or the time between calls.

For my new friends. In the past months I have laughed and learned, but I have also stumbled. I have never asked or had to ask for help so many times in my life and I have never been short on hands to pick me up, offers to help, ears to listen or smiles to brighten my day. I signed up for this challenge with the notion it was going to be just that….challenging. It has been, but it is never hard for very long thanks to you. And for that I am short on words to say thank you.