My head emerged out from the underground station. As my eyes drifted towards the skyline, I was sure my pupils must’ve tripled in size to take it all in. One would’ve thought I had never seen a city before, the way I was gushing. I was beaming from ear to ear, for there she was -- grandly standing before me in all her old world charm: BOSTON. She was an open book, ready for me to dive into her pages. Uncharted waters, just begging to be explored. My mouth gaped open in elation, and instantly she drew me in. Over the next couple of hours I walked block after block -- afraid to blink for fear I’d miss something. It was as if I’d stepped into another world. Energized with excitement, I suddenly felt something inside me spring back to life.
Boston deserves another round all its own; the 6-hour layover I devoted to exploring it certainly didn’t do it justice. No, it was the fact that I was back in the city -- a BIG city -- that got me so beside myself with glee. The city is invigorating. Exciting. Inviting. Life there is never dull, for there are endless opportunities. In the city an eclectic and enriching mix of music, languages, foods and cultures are at your fingertips -- all waiting to challenge the senses.My mind was racing a mile a minute. “Ohh, I could SOOO live here.” There was just one problem with that statement. The problem is that I seem to utter this phrase just about any place I seem to place down my little happy-to-be-anywhere-but-here feet. It is this exact love (addiction is more like it) of travel -- the thrill of taking in new surroundings -- that is most undoubtedly the root cause to my conundrum of indecision.
That indecision haunted me as I walked through those streets of Boston. All I could think about was how much I loved it, how simply wonderful it would be if I could live there… and how equally I would love residing in so many other grand cities like it. Visions of bustling New York, of coastal California, of the southern charm of Charleston… filled my head.
Dreams of returning to school, of speaking Chinese, of becoming a travel writer, a prolific speaker, a talented musician… all attempts at finding a way for myself…
As I walked through those streets, I longed to be able to find it. To find my life. To find myself. To be near my family. To find a happy medium.
Yes indeed, Boston was beautiful. It was beautiful because it was Boston. It was beautiful because it was the city. And it was beautiful because it brought me back to a place I'd very much missed.
