CULTURE SHOCK

It's been awhile!

I started my blog over a year ago having two posts in total ever since. My apologies for that. This is going to be a German/English blog - whatever floats my boat and when my boat is very floaty, I'll even translate my posts into the other language. 

Judging from my first post - was I ever excited about moving to America! Kickstarting my new marriage and spending my every day with the man I love. It was probably for the best staying away from blogging while adjusting to my new life; it would not have painted the prettiest picture: Going through mountains of paperwork to become a permanent resident in the US, heart-wrenching homesickness, being newlyweds and doing the in-law dance with two left feet - and what is up with this Arkansas heat? Imagine sitting in a sauna while covered in honey and breathing through moist cotton. 

Fast forward 1 year. Bob the turtle has tragically kicked the bucket. Thor the turtle has worthily taken his place. The summer is brutal again, but now I get to pay my own AC bill with my own paycheck. My Californian husband is still as gorgeous as ever and has mastered enough of the German language to converse with me auf Deutsch - about the important things anyway like: "I love you." "You look so pretty today." and "We need to buy more kitty litter".

  

In some respects, the American dream is simply that, a dream. Crossing an ocean to a land far, far away and living happily ever after doesn't just happen overnight. You don't just magically immerse yourself in a foreign culture that you had only previously comprehended through Hollywood's latest blockbuster or McDonald's next door without encountering some speed bumps. Eating new food, learning new customs, getting a new family - sometimes you don't even know what your expectations are until they aren't met, stereotypes fall through, relationships don't necessarily develop the way you'd hoped.

It would take more than a blog or a fairytale to capture what packing up your life and starting anew with someone wonderful entails. But I'm still here, still kicking, loving life and knowing that God is with me every step of the way.