Monday started the week off pretty well. I ate a fresh salad, banana and a really good curry chicken wrap for lunch. Then I got to go home an hour early because my french teacher wasn’t there again. The only downside to this Monday was the rain which I’m very used to by now.
Tuesday I had a big math test that I’m not feeling too great about it. I’ve also obtained a sweet tooth here in France and Tuesday it was really aching. It doesn’t like the cuts I’ve made to what kinds of foods I eat. My sweet tooth and I are always having an argument whenever I go to the store or in the kitchen. I give into it more times than I care to admit but I am getting better, I promise!
Wednesday was a much more fun day for me. We had a lab about chlorophyll and most all class we basically only talked and smashed leaves in a bowl. Then for my art class we are making a short film and I pulled the shortest paper from Aude’s (girl in our group) hand so I had to be one of the main people. However that only means I am on camra most. My only line was to yell,” LE ROCK!” All the other times I am pretending to read a book and am eavesdropping on passerbyers’ conversations. I’m still a little confused on the details of the storyline but oh well! After that class I was done for the day so Eliza and I went to do some makeup shopping and to grab lunch. I got some new lipstick and nail stickers that I’m quite excited about. I also got some makeup for Ombeline as her birthday present because her birthday coming up here in a few weeks. While I was checking out, Eliza make marks all over her hand with the tester lipsticks, which she does everytime we step into any store with makeup. That girl could shop for makeup all day if I let her. But I was hungry so we then went to Pita Pit where I got this curry chicken wrap with cheese, olives, guacamole and spinach and it was AMAZING. I want to go there all the time now. Eliza and I were very tempted to go back and get another one but we thought against it seeing as we don’t want to get fat and we had already walked to this park we really like that has that big bird cage. We sat on a bench and talked and ate for a while. I’m happy that I now have a friend that I click with because I didn’t really have that in the beginning. That evening I went to the post office on my way home and the lady working was so nice and patient with me even though I showed up two minutes before closing behind a line of four or five people. Then that night Stephan made this really amazing fish that we’ve never had before and I really hope he makes again sometime!
Thursday was the first day in a week in which rain did not fall from the sky non-stop. It did a little bit but I’m going to be happy with the improvement. I also had a physics quiz that day which I think I did okay on. I at least hope I did okay on it. I also found out that while the private school I attended is not in itself very expensive, the food at the private school averages out to be around six euros per meal. My pal, Saku, did the math. I do have to admit that there is always a good variety of food, healthy options, and I never left unsatisfied with the taste or amount of food (decides that one chicken nugget-potato meal). I’m not going to lie, I’m going to miss the school food a lot. In fact there’s a lot I’m going to miss from here.
I got home by 3:20 Thursday so I hung out and rested before yet another party. This time it was a twentieth birthday party for one of Faustines cousins, Clement. I was expecting it to be at someone’s house but it was actually held in a rented room at some community center. All the decorations were tasteful and the food was even tastier. I found that I really love foie gras now. For the first hour or so while everyone arrived, I talked a lot with Faustines extended family and they were all very interested in the differences of California and Colorado so I definitely got my daily French speaking practice in then. There was then a game where you picked a name of a famous french person out of a hat and then you had to find whoever got that famous persons spouse and once you did that you would take a funny picture with that person. I didn’t know who the famous person was but Faustine helped me find her uncle who had the name of the spouse. After that there was another game played where you would have a clothing pin and throughout the night you couldn’t say the words “oui” or “non” and if you did you would have to give your pin to whoever made you say it. Maxent and his uncle tied by dinner time so there wasn’t a winner. We finally sat down to eat at very nicely set tables. There were three courses that went by pretty fast since there were only around forty or fifty people there. Over half of whom were family. Faustine is unbelievably blessed to have such a nice and open family. It makes me miss my family a lot to be honest. But I will see them soon enough! Speaking of family, Clement’s parents wanted him to take a picture with me so of course I did and then all the adults started making marriage jokes… I don’t even want to know what shade of red my face became there in that moment. We didn’t have cake until 1:15 and after cake we were dancing until 3:45 when we went home.
We didn’t have school again on Friday again so we all had some much needed sleep. From sleeping in so late, we therefore had a late lunch. Then that evening I went for a run in the light rain which was actually really nice. The rest of that evening I was working on projects for school when I got an upsetting call from my mom. A very good family friend of ours has lost his battle to cancer. I took a while to compose myself before I could leave my room to tell my host parents. They gave me a big hug and I talked with them about it. I did call Christa that night and we talked about all the memories we’ve had with him. It’s hard losing someone you’ve known your whole life. It hard when the circle of life is completed for someone you care about. It’s not something you think is going to happen on your exchange and it is something that hits hard and does affect this experience. I’m just very blessed I have a family here that really supports me.
Saturday I didn’t feel like sitting around all day so I went to the store, took the family dog on a long walk and went to the Gare with Natalie to pick up Ombeline because she is now on summer vacation.
Sunday I finished my homework before lunch and then went to Dinan with Natalie and Stephan after lunch. None of my host siblings wanted to come, even though they hadn’t left the house since Friday and it was perfect weather. I was at least eager to get out. So we walked around the charming river town, talking, going to churches and getting some very yummy macaron ice cream.
Now I prepare to face the last few days as a minor. My seventeenth year of life has been, by far, my most eventful year. I’ve had crazy summer adventures with my friends, I had my first love, my first job, I started to love the classes I was taking, I became closer than ever with my twin, I quit my first job, I moved to France, I got over my first love, I’ve made new friends, new family, new interests, new passions, a new way of looking at life and I’ve found a way to be my own best friend even though I’ve been blessed with some of the best best friends the world could give me. I’m sad that this year is three days from being over. But life is a book and time flips the pages for you. I’m excited and scared for what is going to come next for me. Scared because it’s the unknown but excited because if the book of my life has any sort of trend so far, it is that no matter how great the last chapter was, the next one has other new things that can be more great or even just great in different ways even if my life slows down or speeds up. One thing’s for certain, I am living a very blessed life. Our family friend, whose life was cut short, said in his final months that he has lived a blessed life. He truly was a man of God too. My prayer for myself and everyone I know, for the rest of our lives, is to see what we’ve been blessed with even in the most grim times.