Living a Lifetime in 4 Days

When we set off for Rome over a week ago, I remember the excitement I felt to explore - 

to see something I'd never seen before - 

to be enlightened by a different view of the world.

In our last hours in Rome, we retraced our steps to the places we'd been...

while scrambling to fit in the things we had missed...

The Borghese Gallery...

p.s. this place has the absolute best gelato in Rome. Go there. Be uplifted. It's nestled in the side streets by the Pantheon. And to think we almost missed out on it...

It was a painful experience, having to say goodbye.

(But, come to think of it, that may have been the sunburn.)

But it's "soothing" to look back on the memories and realize...

I'm not the same person I was when I left. 

I've seen a lifetime in just a few days...and I can't help but be changed by it.

(I mean - I went bra-less for the first time in Europe! Even though it was necessary due to excessive sunburning, a person can't help but be changed after that!)

Throughout our trip, Ellie and I both were struggling to come to terms with the fact that we might not ever return.

We had to do everything.

We had to see everything.

We had to absorb everything.

But we physically and emotionally couldn't. 

And I thought - I can't live life with the mindset that this will be my only adventure!

I may not return to Rome,

but I will continue to explore.

I will brave the unknown lands of marriage on August 18th...

I will tackle the challenge of graduation and job searching with faith in the Lord...

I will discover a grander view of life from the seat of a mother...

and who knows... 

maybe I'll get the chance to add more than aloe to this...

 So - here's to the lessons learned from past adventures and to the excitement of adventures to come!

Cheers!