| Untagged | 18 Jan 2010 |
| Back Home After My Italian Sabbatical by Regina |
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“Travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living.”
After 14 years at the helm of CCA, my incredible team gave me the opportunity of a lifetime. Staff and board members kindly stepped up to help shoulder my responsibilities and allow my family to embark on a ten-year dream of an overseas adventure together.
After spending nearly five months in Florence, Italy, we excitedly walked off the plane last month ready to share our stories and the lessons we had learned! We had a renewed sense of accomplishment, self-reliance and gumption. We made new friends and found new teachers. Most importantly, we all learned a thing or two about the ways we approach life and its challenges.
A city full of artists, unbelievable food, rich history and endless possibilities, we fell in love with Florence long before we arrived. For all of us, it now holds beautiful memories and remarkable experiences.
For me, the sabbatical provided time to decompress, find a different rhythm, and meet exciting people with new ideas developed from a different world view. I cherished watching old men walking arm-in-arm for coffee in the morning, and the organized chaos of drivers never obeying traffic signs or yielding to pedestrians. In fact, I became quite adept at understanding many of the hand gestures, shrugs and subtle communication style of the Italians! Heading to the mercato for produce and meat and alimentari (dry grocers) each morning was an adventure in patience, language barriers and courage. I loved learning new recipes, hearing stories about the USA at dinner parties, meeting ex-patriots, students and local families.
We have returned with a new appreciation for the beauty of our own country - full of responsive service, technology and a variety ethnic food. However, I believe we will always miss the daily rhythm of a simpler city - full of church bells, bridges, cobblestone streets, shopkeepers, and all the people that became a part of our daily landscape. The experience was all we could have dreamed of, and on the day we left Florence we knew we would never be the same. We developed an appreciation for the lives we have, and were honored with another place to call home.
Happy New Year my friends! May you all find the way to a few of your dreams and adventures in the year ahead. I am so glad to be back at CCA.
Warmly,
Regina
