Rodrigues Week II

Samuel M. Rodrigues                                    AP Language                                            12 January 2021

Tu parles français?

    Could you imagine living anywhere else than Nazareth, Pennsylvania? Truly, could you? Could you learn and fully understand a foreign tongue, appreciate an unknown culture, and become accustomed to living elsewhere? Would you be willing to leave your friends and family behind? These are the questions I ask myself. Rather, the questions I have been asking myself almost obsessively for months now. Inevitably, I will have to confront the source of these pressing questions, but for now, I anxiously wait.

    A few months ago, my father prefaced a question that took me by surprise -to say the least. Having been searching for an opportunity like this for years, I was excited. It was an opportunity to get away. Not out of distaste for the place I called home, but rather, out of a sense of exploration and a possibility mindset. The question my father asked me was, "Would you be willing to move to France?" Kind of bombshell right? My immediate response to the question was yes, but now, in a situation where it will actually happen, I'm not entirely sure if I'm wholeheartedly on board. 

    My father continued to ask me this question -and others like it. Each time I met these questions with excitement and full-fledged support. About a month after these exchanges began, I came home to big news: my father had been selected for the position and had signed the contract. I don't think I truly understood the gravity of the situation at the time (I still don't think I do), but I've begun to anxiously wait for the day when many things in my life will disappear. Soon enough, I will no longer see familiar faces. Instead, I will be a stranger immersed in an unfamiliar world. 

    I think the saying "only hate the road when you're missing home" is surprisingly relatable. Everything around me that I currently take for granted will be gone and I am nervous and anxious to see how things will play out. Encountering loss and missing my current life is inevitable, yet I feel as though there is another side to this story. I deeply feel like this experience will broaden my horizons in unimaginable ways and prove highly beneficial for my future. I think I will learn to absolutely love the culture, and make friends and memories to last a lifetime. 

    Now, I left out some details from the blurb above, so I will try to cover anything specific I missed. In July of 2021, my family and I will be moving to the city of Aix en Provence in the South of France. My dad will be working at a pet supply company know as Royal Canin owned by his current company Mars Inc. I will also be attending a private international high school for an extra year (for a total of two years) in order to receive my International Baccalaureate degree or IB. 

The picturesque lavender fields of Aix en Provence.

My dad's new company.