September 19th was my birthday. I turned 21 years old.

I don’t feel any different. I’m still me. And the usual 21 milestone was a bit negated by the fact that A) I’m studying in a foreign country where the legal drinking age is 16, and B) I’m not great at following most rules in the first place.

It was the first birthday I spent without my parents. 20 years of wonderful, love-filled birthdays…and then a single birthday without them. It was a hard day, but I realized that I will probably have more birthdays without them. I felt more grown up, in that sense. It was still great to see them, even if it was only over facetime.  : )

I did feel so much love on my birthday though, even without those I love most by my side. All 10 of us in the Vienna program went out to dinner to celebrate at one of my favorite restaurants. It may not have been a 21 run and it may not have been a crazy party, but it was the kind of birthday I wanted: simple, full of laughter and spent with friends who are growing closer every day.

Here’s to many more. Thanks for stopping by.

20 Sep This entry was published on September 20, 2013 at 9:30 AM and is filed under Austria, On Love. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.