Six Years

It’s been six years since we lost my big sister. How the time flies. In those six years,  I went to college, I graduated. I grew closer to my family. I found an awesome guy who is there for the good and bad days. I started my life in the aftermath of her death. How do you handle that? 

The more time that goes by, the more I see incredible blessings weaved through it all. It pushed friends away. It brought the best people, the people I needed and still need. I’m immeasurably blessed those people who helped me through Whitney’s death. I miss that 18-year-old girl’s innocence but I’m really proud of this 24-year-old woman. I know Whitney is, too.

Copperplate Calligraphy

I just finished an amazing 6-week Copperplate calligraphy class with Anne Elser at the Spruill Center. I've always been interested in typography and letters. I love words, and calligraphy turns words into art. It's a beautiful combination.  

It's harder than it looks, but with an amazing instructor like Anne, I think I'm on my way to drawing letters in an impressive way.

In this post-grad world, it's important to stay inspired and to keep learning! How easy it is to stop learning. 

welcome to the cottage...

i t ' s   t i m e   f o r   a   n e w   b e g i n n i n g . 

Italy, I just can't quit you.

GET OVER IT.

Sometimes, that's what I imagine people mentally think when I start a sentence with "When I lived in Rome..." or "One time in Italy...". So, I try to be aware. I try to listen more than I talk and think with a smile on my face without ever moving my mouth.

I'm struggling a little bit. My job is great, but I'm a get-up-and-go girl. I love my sense of adventure, but I look around and I don't see much. I'm sitting at a desk for 8-hours a day with the same nighttime routine prettyyy much every night.

So, when I come across an article like "39 Reasons Studying Abroad in Italy Ruins Your Life", I'm intrigued. The title is way too dramatic because Studying Abroad in Italy makes your life. It doesn't ruin it. What is ruined are the preconceived notions you may have had about your future, the path to take. Maybe money stops being so important. Maybe you learn to love the simple pleasures of life, like a good cappuccino instead of obsessing over television. Or maybe, like me, you become more conscious about where your food comes from, choosing a farmer's market over a traditional big box store.

At any rate, each one of those photos associated with the 39 Reasons made my heart flutter, especially "#36: The Way Roma Glows At Night". As beautiful as Rome is during the day, it came alive at night. The music, the loud conversations and the Orange Glow started off as the unknown and became a treasure during my 110-day visit.

Leave it to BuzzFeed for yet another incredibly relatable list. It's as if they hopped in my head with the thought, "Hm, what would Clare write?" and to be honest, I'm offended they didn't.

Though I will say, Italy pretty much ruined American pizza for me. Is that too dramatic?