Love life & it will love you back.

There is this thing that happens to you when you move abroad, or at least it happens to me pretty often. You are walking around going about your business, maybe lost in thought, worried about something or tired from a long day and then BAM! You see something - the sun coming over the rooftops, the light from the Eiffel Tower making rounds above the city, a man playing the accordion, the fresh pastries at the corner shop. It feels like what I would expect getting a good B-slap to the face would be like...but in a good way. This "my life is awesome" affect (I coined that name, thank you very much) is never lost on me and I am thankful for it because it seems to come at the times I need it most.

I'm not going to lie, its not all fun and games over here. I miss Mike and Taylor so much it makes my stomach hurt everyday. I miss all my family and my friends back home and I find myself longing for a day in good old Pacific Beach which I still think of as home. So much so that days I am really tired after class I leave thinking that I am going to get in my car and drive back to little apartment D on Oliver Ave, maybe stop in 24 hour fitness for a quick and painful workout...until that whole "B-slap in the face"thing happens and I realize I am on a different continent.

Living in Paris has opened a whole new world for me. I am more motivated than ever and feel particularly inspired more and more each day. I am so happy and relieved by how certain I feel that Paris and this pastry school is where I am meant to be this year. I have only felt that sincere, concrete, no-question-about-it feeling once before in my life - lucky for me he felt the same way.

In the spirit of motivation and dream chasing, I wanted to share some of my favorite quotes with you (via Pinterest, obvi). Maybe they will resonate with you as much as they do with me. Go get 'em, guys. :)