When the Sun Breaks Through

I have to admit that this move to Germany has been tough, and that's putting it mildly. I'm always one that makes lemonade when I get handed lemons...but frankly this situation felt a lot bigger than lemons. I quit answering emails for a while because everyone was asking how cool it was and how lucky I was to get to live in a foreign country....why didn't I feel like that? I visited before and loved it, so why was it so hard? By the way, I have since learned that visiting some place and living there and not even close to the same thing. Was I getting older and more set in my ways? Was it the kid factor?

To top it off, we moved right as winter was beginning and there is little to no sun. Everyday is gray and overcast. You know the sun is shining up there somewhere, but you never see it. If you wake up at 8:00 am you can easily catch the sunrise, and if you are driving home at 4:30 pm you can watch it set! That's right...about 8-9 hours a day that aren't pitch black! My kids are so confused by this. Many people here get severely depressed in the winter time for this very reason. No wonder I was feeling so yucky!

I had so much to do around the house, but John and I decided to take the kids to a parents day out and hit one of the nearby Christmas Markets in Heidelberg (post & pictures will follow soon). It had turned cold and I was dreading freezing my rear off for a few hours while I looked at German knick knacks. The only thing motiating me was a day without the kids. But then this great thing happened....

THE SUN BROKE THROUGH!

It was visible all day and beating down on us. It was freezing outside...but it didn't matter. It was out all day and the clouds went away completely. I have not seen a day like this since we have been here. For the last 3 days, I have seen the sun everyday...maybe not all day, but I have seen in.

It got me thinking that this is what life is like. This gloom and doom that I was feeling was the clouds. They hung over me and prevented all my happiness from coming through. Then the clouds part and things don't seem so bad anymore. It's clarity. It's gaining perspective on where you were, where you are now, and where you are going. See the clouds will always pass eventually, and even when they are there, the sun is still there too. I may not always be able to see it, but it's there. It's in knowing that just like bad times, it won't last forever and the sun will shine again.