One day, this will be comfortable, too

The Amstel River as seen from the Blauwbrug bridge, Amsterdam

When leaving home, or a place that has become like home, to head out on a new adventure, one must be prepared to give up being comfortable. Walking down the streets with signs you can’t yet read, not yet having your local hangouts where you can just drop in and know what to order, little things that are customary to your new destination, but are totally new to you.

I have arrived in Amsterdam, and am beginning to settle myself in for a few months. I’ve stumbled across some familiar places from a previous trip here, but as I was here for only a short time so long ago, it’s as if it is a new city to explore entirely.

It is an exciting feeling to wander around the pretty streets, the ubiquitous canals flowing below and bikes buzzing right by. I am attempting to orient myself around the North Star that is my new apartment. Perhaps it is because all the canals look so similar (for now, at least), or that Dutch is confusing for me to understand (again, for now), but Amsterdam is still a labyrinth to me. So I will begin to take the opportunity to get lost in the maze. By discovering new neighborhoods, I know I will find the places for me. What will be my favorite park where I can take a picnic and a good book is waiting for me.

With every experience, there are new challenges. Every experience I’ve had in life has both led me on the path to this new adventure, and prepared me to face whatever comes my way. So much will be new, different, challenging, and perhaps difficult at times. But one day, it won’t. One day, I will set out to my favorite café, and know exactly where I am going. One day, the novelty of how things are different here will just be how things are done. One day, this will be comfortable, too.

This thought, which I say to myself multiple times a day, reassures me. But it is also a reminder. Being comfortable means you know your way around, and have taken on the local way of life as your own to some degree. It means you can fit in. But for me, I am wary to be too comfortable, anywhere I go. You don’t want to fit in so much that you lose what makes you unique, that you lose what you have learned on your journey there. A little challenge is good for us. Being not totally comfortable reminds us that we have our own ways of doing things, too. It is good to question not only the ideas and customs of where we are visiting, but of where we are coming from as well. If you are too comfortable, you have become complacent.

You do not have to uproot constantly to change your scenery, to try out your perspective. Getting out of your comfort zone can include moving to Amsterdam, or it can be taking up a new hobby or joining a sports league. The rewards of trying new things and meeting new people are so many that the initial discomfort in trying something new will be quickly forgotten.

When I feel too comfortable, I know it is time for a change. If you seek them, there will be new challenges to be met, new lessons to be learned, and new joys to be discovered. When the time comes for me to move on, I can’t wait to see what little bit of Amsterdam I take with me. Until then, I’ll enjoy getting lost, and finding my way back again.

love,

greer