Story Time
I fell in love with Chicago very quickly in 2009 and made it my home the following year. In the end I asked too much of it, as with every other destination in my wanderlust years. They say wherever you go, there you are, and I can vouch for that. Worse yet, in some places, most places in fact, there you are, all alone. I got very lonely, despite seeing my beloved brother and sister-in-law every couple of weeks. After six years back in be-it-ever-so-humble, I don't feel lonely anymore, not even in this alienating pandemic year.
To paraphrase the Cheers theme, I've returned to where several people know my name, and my life has improved in improbable ways, not obviously connected to being less lonely, but possibly related. For example, I never learned to drive as a kid, and at some point in my adult life it began to feel like a lost cause. But since coming back here I have, in fact, become a driver (partly out of necessity in this town), and at this point it's just a routine thing, for better and for worse.
For a more significant example, I finally felt secure enough to halt my dead-end career track and pursue my long-time dream of becoming an architect. I'm now in my first semester of my Master's program.
This year certainly presents unique challenges in doing it all in my home, which may be a comfortable environment, but it's not necessarily made for motivation or efficiency. I guess everything happens for a reason, in that even if there isn't a planned reason, it ends up teaching some kind of lesson. I will so appreciate returning to the world out there, while trying to hold on to some of the comfort and gentleness I experienced being stuck inside.
Hopefully this comes out right. I'm using the app, and it's kind of a weird app. (Edit: I fixed it in the browser. You guys really could use some help with your app, or maybe my Western mind just doesn't work the same way as Russian developers.)
To paraphrase the Cheers theme, I've returned to where several people know my name, and my life has improved in improbable ways, not obviously connected to being less lonely, but possibly related. For example, I never learned to drive as a kid, and at some point in my adult life it began to feel like a lost cause. But since coming back here I have, in fact, become a driver (partly out of necessity in this town), and at this point it's just a routine thing, for better and for worse.
For a more significant example, I finally felt secure enough to halt my dead-end career track and pursue my long-time dream of becoming an architect. I'm now in my first semester of my Master's program.
This year certainly presents unique challenges in doing it all in my home, which may be a comfortable environment, but it's not necessarily made for motivation or efficiency. I guess everything happens for a reason, in that even if there isn't a planned reason, it ends up teaching some kind of lesson. I will so appreciate returning to the world out there, while trying to hold on to some of the comfort and gentleness I experienced being stuck inside.
Hopefully this comes out right. I'm using the app, and it's kind of a weird app. (Edit: I fixed it in the browser. You guys really could use some help with your app, or maybe my Western mind just doesn't work the same way as Russian developers.)