BALANCE
where connecting with likeminded people is not an
anomaly, where a community
of 3,000 people regularly
cook, dine, and talk with
one another—here, I felt
my happiest and discovered
my truest self. Here was
a feeling of belonging to
a large, supporting family
and engaged community.
Here was my source of
equilibrium.
UNDERSTANDING
BALANCE
Just three months after
finding that clarity, my
departing plane touched
down in Munich. Narrowing
red, puffy eyes against the
glare of my phone, my search
for the connecting flight
information was interrupted
by a flood of text messages.
Everyone I left in Siena was
sending pictures, jokes,
audio bytes of singing—
and every person ended
by saying, “Basta lacrime,
tesoro.” No more tears,
treasure.
Noticing one message in
English, I clicked my best
friend’s name to read, “I
know you weren’t ready to
leave, but have safe travels.
Looking forward to seeing
you stateside, if only for a
day.” Despite an unrelenting
sadness, I stood to exit the
plane, knowing I could do
so steadily. For the next 24
hours, there would be just
enough time to see my best
friend of 18 years before we
continued in our different
directions.
I spent three beautiful
months with family in Italy;
the next four would hold
returning to university in
Arizona, plus a one-week
getaway to see family in
New York. By Christmas
and the New Year, I would
reunite with my parents,
grandmother, brother, and
other family in England.
It is the same formula
from my childhood, but with
a key difference: there is no
flaw in the equation. Life is
a balance of holding on and
letting go, not fighting the
necessity to leave the things
and people you love for other
things and people you love.
“Home” is a concept that
defies physical boundaries;
the sense of balance I found
in Siena did not stem from
the security of being in a
place, but rather the feeling
of being grounded in people.
Balance cannot be found
while pining for the past or
dreaming of the future—it
comes from being in the
moment, growing from
each experience while
steadily moving forward,
and appreciating that you
are right where you are
supposed to be.