In 2008, I had traveled by Eurostar from London to Paris and had gotten a glimpse of tiny cars zipping through the French countryside. I knew instantly that someday I wanted to drive down those roads and explore where they led. For several years, I thought about it from time to time and finally when I began to plan how to celebrate my 50th birthday, I dared to start dreaming. I dared to see myself there, living in a community of people and experiencing life, even just for a little while, among them. From that vision, I made lists of what I needed to do to make it happen, starting with finding a place to fit in.
After seeing the image of the house and talking to the owner from California, I knew that this was the place I had imagined in my dreaming, a four-hundred-year-old stone cottage in a small hamlet of only seventeen homes.
Next began the long year of preparations, from learning the language, to getting in shape and most importantly, figuring out how to pay for the trip.
My family isn't wealthy, not even close and when I would tell people about my month-long trip, I'm sure they wondered how I could afford such a thing. But when you want something badly enough, you find a way to make it happen. I vowed not to take from our family budget, so I came up with a plan to make the money on my own.
At that time, large chalkboards were all the rage in home decor, used for keeping up with family schedules, daily bible verses or favorite quotes. I set about purchasing ornate frames from junk stores and yard sales. I painted and distressed them. I had metal cut for each one then painted them with coat after coat of chalkboard paint. I hauled them to craft shows in Kentucky and Tennessee each weekend from early fall, all the way up until Christmas.
I made a lot of money but still fell a little short, so I took a job in a tax preparation office from January through April 15th, which left just under a month to work out the final details.
I had planned to go alone because my husband had no desire to tag along. People thought I was crazy, and in hindsight, I probably was, but I wasn't afraid. My son had just completed his graduate degree from Colorado State University and was moving to Nashville and at the last minute, he decided to go with me. He placed his belongings in storage and planned to explore Europe while I "lived" in France. I am so glad God saw fit to send him with me. He was my rock and such a help to me from the moment we landed and had trouble with the rental car. It didn't take long for me to realize that I would have been so lonely without him. All my experiences would have been hollow without someone to share them with.
This picture of me watering my French neighbor's flowers while she was away to Italy for two weeks is the "cherry on top" of my summer in France. I had found a place to fit in and it was more than I could have ever dreamed.
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