The Start of a Journey...

Yesterday, I blurted out my pie in the sky crazy awesome dream.

And in an amazing series of moments and conversation, I realized my passion. My deep-down-to-the-core-feel-it-in-your-soul passion. Like the kind that makes you start to weep kind of passion. Like it hits you, hard. Without notice.

passion: intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction

So thus begins this blog.

Why Project: Joie de Vivre?

joie de vivre: the joy of living

Quite literally. That's what joie de vivre means. And I think that the French have nailed it on the head. Having lived there as a child and then again as a young adult, I was able to experience real life in France. Not just as a tourist. Not just on a casual vacation. But I got to live. And I can honestly say that living in France were some of my happiest years of life. It was truly life changing.

Granted, my first stint in France was when I was four until I was seven, but that experience has ALWAYS stayed with me. Always. Twenty years later, I still have memories of those days. How life seemed so much easier. So much lighter. And I think that's because it was.

I learned to speak French because I had to. I didn't go to an American school. We lived in a small town about an hour outside of Lyon, which is two hours by TGV (high-speed train) southeast of Paris. I don't think they had a fully dedicated American school in our little town in the late 80's. And I'm so glad they didn't. I was able to have the full experience. Like a real French kid.

I remember my first word I learned. Poisson. No, not poison. But fish. Ever seen The Little Mermaid where Chef Louie sings about fish? Yeah, that poisson. And from there I just picked up. The resilience of young children. I learned how to read in French before I did English. I had a real French accent. At five years old, I was correcting my parents' pronunciation. Go figure.

I remember my parents had such a happy life there. My mom was able to stay at home. Live the life. My sister was born in France. We traveled to neighboring countries. I mean, seriously, what kid can say that they've been to Italy, Germany, Greece, England, Austria, Switzerland, all before the age of 8?! I can. And I'm so much better for it. I was able to see the world. Appreciate the beauty in each place. Appreciate the unique ways of life.

When I returned to live in France in 2003, it was an amazing year. With a fresh perspective as a budding young adult, I was able to live day to day in the shoes of a French student. Again, while I was there, I attended L'Institut d'Etudes Politiques, a part of the Universite de Lyon system. A real French school with real French students.

And man, do French students study hard. Like fiercely hard. And I think that's why they enjoy their vacations so much. It's well deserved. The French university system definitely introduces you to bureaucracy right away. But it's a system, and it's a system that works for the French. And shoot, they've been around as a country for a very, very long time.

My life in France is unparalleled with any other experience. This is not to say that I don't love my life now. But I think that in the United States, we get so caught up with status and chasing status, that we forget to live. Forget to live the life that we've been given. We forget to serve. We forget to encourage.

It's been a lifelong dream to return to France. To enjoy the food. To savor the wine. To take a promenade down the street. To live. Fully and joyfully.

And so the birth of this blog. It's a project, a path, a journey towards unlocking that passion, and making it real. Making it tangible. Finding the joie de vivre. Living the life I've been given and defining the path on my terms.

This is my journey. Come, join me.

Merci a tous,
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