Italy Post #8

Dear Readers,
Today has been the first restful day since I left my couch in Oakdale. It seems like every day has been loaded with something new and exciting, which in reality means that it has been entirely draining. And wonderful. But that’s beside the point.

Don’t get me wrong - I’m absolutely loving it here; I know this semester is exactly what I need, to figure things out, to get back to a good place in my life in general, to think. I wouldn’t have it any other way. But at the same time, I’m exhausted. I’m adjusting to a new way of life, new food, new friends, new routines and schedules, and an art history class that seems way too hefty to fit into 3 weeks. All of that on top of a schedule which looks like its had one to many plateful of pasta the way its spilling over its belt. The one thing consoling me at this point is that Matt, Christine (the RA) and Dr. Skillen are super-attentive. In a good way. They meet with me frequently about my symptoms, exhort me to tell them in what ways they could help and if I’m having any more problems. Dr. Skillen has even given me permission to miss a few classes if I’m having too many problems. The care they show me is something I’ve never experienced. They’ve also encouraged me to share my disease with all of the students at the meetings we have daily; I’ll be the first to share (we all have to do it). While the community here sometimes seems too small, its going to be great to have everyone know.

I stayed up late last night; Orvieto had something like a fair called “Shopping under the stars” where all of the shops stayed open later than usual and about 30 bands were dispersed all over the city in the various piazzas. So I woke up late today; we usually don’t have class on Fridays, but the rest of the group went to the scheduled activity for the day. It was hard to say no to a trip to Siena, but I decided for the first time in a long time to listen to my body. So I slept in. Then I got up and made a HUGE cappuccino for myself. It was great! The rest of the day went much the same way, some cleaning, some laundry, a lot of resting.

I think this is going to be one of my focuses for the semester: listening to myself. I often put my own body by the wayside for my own wants, whether that’s running the extra mile or laying on the couch for one more hour. I’ve trained myself to get what I want, not what I need. And then all of that stress and fatigue builds up until my body fails, just like it did this summer when I couldn’t walk. Or sit up. So I’m going to pay attention and do something good for myself - rest.