Texas-Sized Gratitude

The past few weeks at home have been a mixture of joy being with my family, boredom and eagerness to start learning in Bonn, stress in trying to plan weekend trips, peace in realizing that the weekends will fall into place and be incredible, and a lot of prayers and attempts to pack. Yesterday I finally went through my suitcase and surprisingly have lots of room left in it, but not surprisingly most of my wardrobe ended up in the colors of blue, light blue, navy, or white. Classic me.
I was riding my bike on a familiar route a couple days ago, and I couldn't help thinking about how beautiful Texas is and everything that I will be leaving behind. It was the evening and the sky was turning pink with fluffy clouds painted above the treeline. My route took my past the neighborhoods, through a park, and into pastures. I was covered in sweat even though summer had yet to reach it's full wrath of heat, and I took my time as I rode past the longhorns in the fields. One in particular had his head sticking through the fence and was snacking on the grass. This got me thinking about my excursion to Germany...
"The grass is always greener on the other side"... in the case of the big, old longhorn it ironically was greener. For us, as we are about to head off to a shiny new country, many of us never having ventured outside of our nation, sometimes feel like going to a new place is "greener". Exciting images of beautiful castles, bustling cities, grand mountains, rich history, and a new culture. It got me thinking about how the Germans might view Texas as "greener". In what ways do I take for granted so many beautiful things about the way I get to live and where. In what ways do we get caught up in the idea of travel and Instagram pictures as opposed to living in the moment and experiencing where we are in each day, no matter where that may be.
Riding back I passed some tall, feathery grass, and it was stunning. The last rays of sunshine glowed as the blades danced in the summer breeze, how lucky are we. This is Texas: boots, two-stepping, southern tea and southern heat, steak and brisket, Tex-Mex and gauc, pastures, cornfields, and pecan pie. I think my host family will be able to confirm many Texan stereotypes. So as I leave for Germany, I know that I will be blown away by all that I see and learn, but I will remember where I came from and what that means to me. It will be interesting to reflect on the ways that my love for Texas may grow as I grow in love with Germany and the people within.