Daily Dose of España...Estoy Aquí

Estoy Aquí (I am here).

I see this on the sidewalk every morning that I walk to Spanish class. It never really meant anything to me and I always wondered what its purpose is or what the person who did it intended by it. Last week a sad event presented itself in my life and that of my family. I lost one of the most important people in my life, my Opa. At first it was a mixture of denial and anger with myself for being away and not being there with my family. I went through a mixture of emotions and am blessed to have a lot of my great friends and family supporting me through this all.

I wouldn't normally write about this in my blog, but today when I walked to class and saw the sidewalk, something hit me. Life is full of amazing people, experiences and single moments. These are what constitute the beautiful memories that we carry forth with us. At the same time, life is fragile and things that we never want or expect to experience occur. It's a part of our process to grow in our own shoes and in the world around us. Like the sidewalk says, "Estoy Aquí (I am here)," in this moment and in this place, and that's how life goes. Often times, like I did last week, I question why things happened and fail to understand that everything happens in its own time, and for a certain reason. Seeing the sidewalk reminded me that life is full of joys as well as bumps in the road, but the joys and memories we have created from relationships with people and experiences outweigh the challenging moments. It also reminded me that we can't control everything, and that sometimes we have to let life present itself in its true form because that's just what is meant to happen.

I miss my Opa dearly and think of him constantly, and even though it still pains me to know he is no longer with us in physical form, I know he will always be with me in spirit and in my memories. I was fortunate enough to be very close with him and to enjoy many wonderful moments with him. He is part of why I am who I am today. And, I thank whoever painted that saying on the sidewalk because with those two simple words I realized that we often waste away precious moments in life by being mad and upset about unexpected & challenging occurrences. Instead we should focus on living in the moment, knowing that you are there in that second  and in that place for a reason...and that everything that is important to you (including memories of those that you love) are there with you as well, in that very spot where you are standing.