I feel the need today to say “Thank You”! I realize how lucky I am to be able to be on this journey…self discovery along with world exploration is not easy and many don’t get this chance! I have been blessed with this gift.

I realized today how much of the thanks for that gift is owed to my parents! They overcame challenges I shall never fully appreciate and they gave me this life that I have been able to build upon and mold for myself. I have seen where they come from first hand and it’s shown me how far they have grown from where they had started! Paying witness to their beginnings put in perspective so much about them that I just didn’t get…My father was a Polish farmboy that had to abandon it all and eventually managed to work his way to the USA and my mother was a simple German village girl from a large yet poor family who looked for something better in America.

They led by the example of their actions and this has set my path; I learned to never fear the world…always be independent and go for what you want…don’t be afraid of hard work…and the importance of family!

It may seem the last lesson was indeed lost on me, but it definitely was not! I knew I needed this trip in order to gain the perspective on my personal journey, because my journey directly relates to the journey of my parents. Growing up, I always compared my parents to others and I had a hard time grasping why they were so different. But now I more fully appreciate the difference and comprehend how incredible it was that these two people supported and allowed me to follow what to them was an unknown dream; to be a fashion designer in NYC.

I realize I have followed in their steps of creating a life in a strange place and making it work! My lifelong wanderlust has enabled me to see so much more than they ever will…yet I hope they understand the simplest wish they had for themselves and for me is fulfilled: Happiness! I am even happier now that my trip to somewhere far away has made me appreciate them that much more!