FYI

A "liminal space" is a threshold. It is a doorway. It is the space between two worlds. "Liminality" is related to the concept of being "in limbo"; suspended, waiting, and anticipating.

This blog is supposed to be about my fall semester in France, a time when I will be caught between two worlds, as someone who is very obviously American, but who is taking a look at what life could be like in a different place. Additionally, as someone entering her senior year of college, I will be "in limbo" in a different way. I will be completing a portion of my education and deciding what to do after graduation, "in limbo" as someone who stands in the doorway of....a career? more education? adulthood? the real world?

You may be in a very different place in your life than am I, but you too know what it is like to be in limbo. You know what it feels like to look ahead and have no idea where you will be in a week, six months, or a year. In this blog, I will consider what it is like to be in a place of liminality, and while I am doing so, I will also create a blog that lets my friends and family in the U.S. know what I'm up to in Paris.

So why am I already posting things, when I don't leave until September? Simply put, I am already in limbo. I am still in California, working 2 jobs, spending time with my boyfriend, friends, and family, but I am also taking out loans, applying for a student visa, and figuring out how to say goodbye to everyone I love. It is strange to walk down familiar streets and think "Woah!! In a little bit, I will be walking on cobblestones in France" or text my friends and remember that texting will be ridiculously expensive in just a few months.

Welcome! If you want to know what my life is like in Europe, or if you too know how unsettling it is to be in limbo, I invite you to stay a while, read a few posts, and leave a comment if you like.

I look forward to it.