You're not so far from home

Last evening, I was making the 5km trek from the university quarter back to Pourtalès by foot at about 11pm. It was a peaceful night; the air was cool and fresh. As I made my way through the now-barren fields that precede the château on rue Mélanie, I, for the first time since having arrived in Europe, looked up into the night sky and observed the stars. Now, my Astronomy 1010 class and a decent understanding of world geography made me aware that the stars scattered across the sky were, by and large, the same stars in the same positions that I would observe in suburban Atlanta. Yet, for some reason, I perceived a whole different set of constellations fixed in the universe above me.

At first glance, Alsace is an utterly foreign place to an American. Different languages. Different foods. Different customs and expectations. Tiny people squeezed into tiny cars making their way down tiny roads in mediævel neighborhoods. Sidewalks that roll up at sundown. Someone with little exposure to or a nascent understanding of Europe may perceive Strasbourg to be a different world, but it's oddly not quite different from 'home.'

In all the cultures and societies in the world, there are certain unescapable things. Appreciation of good food. Love and respect for family. Admiration of the arts. Social mores and taboos. While how each of these is defined undoubtedly differs from land to land, their presence is nearly universal. The casual observer, perhaps awestruck by the superficial surface variations, may fail to notice the parallels that every village, town and city share. One's mind is so distracted by his location on the map, he does not recognize the very essence of 'home' which lie at his fingertips - a friendship, a warm, comforting meal or the cool side of the pillow on a muggy night.

We should endeavor every day to see that Strasbourg is home for us… and to appreciate the constant familiarity of the evening sky.