I think it has been established that I haven’t been the best blogger over the past year or so. I started one taste at a time as a creative outlet to explore my budding culinary interests, but found that things often got in the way of me consistently blogging, or blogging at all for that matter. Life got in the way. First it was homework, then it was training for a half marathon, then it was more homework, then it was being a senior in college and trying to make the most out of every. last. second., then it was Netflix, and then it was processing graduation, and then, well, you get the point.

Although I found myself straying further and further away from my minuscule corner of the world wide web, it was always in the back of my mind. I missed it here, and I wanted to come back. But not just in the form of a sporadic post here and there. I wanted to come back with a vengeance and completely commit myself to doing things, like cooking and writing, that bring me a profound sense of fulfillment and joy. For I am firmly convinced that it is absolutely necessary to be the architect of your own happiness. So here I am, trying my best not to let life get in the way but rather to weave my life experiences, the good and the bad, as eloquently as possible into these posts.

Plus, I have a feeling that the next few months will bring their fair share of challenges as I prepare to move to France for 8 months to teach English in Vendome, a small city along the Loir River. Full disclosure here: I have absolutely no idea how this adventure is going to turn out. And it’s scary. Like, really scary. But it’s also so incredibly exciting that I have to pinch myself to know I’m not dreaming, to know that I actually bought a one-way plane ticket to Paris.

This blog may very well not turn out like I envision it to. It may never reach a larger audience or ever creep out of its corner of the world wide web. If there’s anything I’ve learned from my days as an English major, it’s that writing (not to mention writing well) is extremely difficult and frustrating. But it also motivates me to look more closely at life, to pay attention to the things and people around me every day. And if, in the humble pursuit of the craft, I can manage to live a more intentional, loving, compassionate, and nourished life, it will all have been worth it.