Day of Atonement

Recipe for Making it Across the Pond

1. Receive a random act of kindness from a visa officer. This includes contacting the visa representative at my school, begging for her help and her making contact with the LA embassy. Then the contact at the LA embassy getting a hold of me and after some crafty persuasion on my part, allowing me to come and pick up my visa at the embassy, even though the office was closed, the printer broke down and normal protocol restricts students to come to the embassy directly!

2. Having an amazing family. After hearing I had a chance to get on my originally scheduled flight my family helped me finish last minute packing (3 very tightly filled suitcases) and errands and leave the house within a few hours. Then, after our car broke down on the freeway (on our way to pick up my visa) my uncle lent us his car and again we were on our way to LA!

3. Short but Meaningful Goodbyes. With little less than a moment to breathe, I hadn't really thought about the physical act of leaving my beloved ones for a year. Whether a blessing or a curse, all the trouble allowed for the final goodbyes at the airport to be short but sweet. They were brief but nevertheless will always remain a beautiful memory for me.

4. Networking. Yes, networking is great in the professional world, but guess what, it is great in the personal world too. Thanks to a close friend of mine, I came in contact with some family he had in London and in turn had a place to stay for a few days before my flat was ready. In addition, they knew a lovely man named Irvin who provided my car transportation for a decent price.

5. Meet incredibly decent people. This family I spoke of has now become my home base here in London. They not only gave me a place to sleep and yummy food to eat but they gave me their hearts, just as I gave them mine. We are now friends and have already made plans to cook together and of course have an English cup of tea. Just from my 3 days with them I learned a great deal of British culture and in addition, I became Jewish for 3 days haha!

6. Yom Kippur. I arrived just before the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur which is also known at the Day of Atonement. The timing of this coincidence could not have been more perfect. As they reflected and repented, I too was preparing to start anew. I was reminded in this beautiful celebration that I can put the craziness of getting here behind me and look to a new year. So I found the final and yet the most important ingredient for my new life to be atonement. Goodbye to the yesterdays of anxiety and hello to the tomorrows of a new beginning!