Educational Excellence

Happy Friday, All!

Here’s to wishing all my friends, readers and others in the path of Hurricane Irma to be and remain safe … Peace be still … a Happy Friday, T.G.I.F!

Have you ever realized that some people may not like you … or your “music”, so to speak?!  The way I see it, we EACH have our own song to sing … have our own music to compose, perhaps using different “instruments” than are customary.  Hopefully by now, you understand that I am using imagery to encourage each of us to ultimately “be ourselves” … or as I had it in my yearbook my senior year at St. Paul’s School:  “Be Yourself … Because You Are You!”

Sometimes, life’s circumstances are NOT what we had hoped for or expected.  Things turn out different.  And … no matter how hard we “push”, things aren’t going to change.  Now please don’t confuse this as my saying just give up!  First of all, because you know I would never suggest that.  Now, let me add some clarity to what I am saying.  Okay, so I have been here in Europe for almost 2 months now.  I like it in Spain … Sabadell, Barcelona to be exact.  The hostess of the home where I am sitting right now is someone I met through an AirBnB reservation.  I was already at the airport in Spain when AirBnB “suggested” to her, since they were cancelling my reservation, that she should do the same …!  I had gotten an approval and confirmation code from AirBnB before I left Ft. Lauderdale. This woman, Vicky Lao, a 66 year old Catalunyan retired business woman and teacher, upon realizing that I had flown from Florida to Spain and had no other options other than the “street”, decided to let me stay at her home anyway.  She sent me the address once my cell phone was able to get messages, gave me instructions on how to arrive using the local train systems, and, once I got lost … decided to meet me at the top of the stairwell of the Metro station which was maybe 30 feet from the entrance to her apartment building … with a cane in her hand!  Can you hear her “music”?!!  I stayed two weeks here with an agreement NOT through AirBnb but between the two of us, had my own little bedroom, was able to shave and shower whenever I wanted, and she prepared meals for ALL 3 of us staying in her home!

After traveling from Sabadell, Barcelona to Valencia by train where I stayed for nearly two weeks, I then flew to Prague and Hamburg where I stayed for four days.  I had a great time and Vicky followed me on Facebook, noting my adventures and commenting.  My next stop was  to Amsterdam by bus since it was close to Hamburg and on the “route” back to Spain.  I stayed there for like 5 or 6 days … had a blast, met a former student from White Plains High School and met up with a “friend of a friend” from Ft. Lauderdale.  I was taken to dinner by Trevor Henry, a younger brother from White Plains, then taken on a canal cruise by Cheryl Nesbit, a yoga teacher who is the “friend of a friend” I met while apartment hunting in Ft. Lauderdale!  I enjoyed myself.  I wanted to live in Spain since I had had such a great time already.  After staying in Paris five days and having a sight-seeing, people meeting adventure in a hostel there in the Art District, I took a bus back to Barcelona where Vicky invited me to stay while I figured out my next move.  I wanted to live in Spain … After checking the requirements for a residency visa, I found a snafu … they require a background check from the local police department where a person is living, or from the FBI.  I would have to go back to Florida and prepare the necessary paperwork to apply for the visa.  Shucks, I have been turned down for jobs in Ft. Lauderdale after a potential employer did a background check on me!  So, I am abandoning the idea of living in Spain and now seeking to investigate “living abroad” in South America perhaps, where the regulations for living in a country are less strict.

I am going to keep on “composing my music”,  some of which you all are reading, continue to seek peace and spiritual development … and my Creator willing … to travel!

Have a great weekend, stay safe out there in the path of Hurricane Irma and wish each other well.

Peace,