1 week in San Francisco 🌉
October 16, 2021
So it's been exactly one week since I landed in San Francisco. One week since I packed up my entire life and moved to a city where I don't know anyone except my boyfriend. To say that the change has been overwhelming is definitely an understatement.
If I was to look back at myself a few years ago, I was itching to move to a different city and start a new life there. Europe was my top pick since I have so much family there and studied abroad in the Netherlands.
Then COVID-19 hit and I was living at home for nearly 2 years. At the beginning it was tough to be around my family 24/7 but eventually, they became my best friends. I became so close to my parents and loved spending time with them, whether it was just relaxing at home, going to play badminton or going on missions together.
I finally got to know my family members as unique individuals rather than their roles as mom, dad, grandma and grandpa and I'm so grateful that I had these 2 years to really strengthen these relationships.
At the same time, I reconnected with a special person from my past. We had met in highschool when we were 15 and had always been in each other's life in some capacity. We started dating shortly after and are so good together. There is something so comforting about being with someone you've known for a decade and I'm so grateful to be in love with my soulmate and best friend.
He works in San Francisco but was able to be back in Toronto because of COVID but the time for him to return back to office by September 2021 was slowly approaching. Neither of us wanted to do long distance but I had just started a new job in January 2021 and the opportunities for his career were bountiful in SF.
Since both our families are in Toronto, the logical step would have been for us to settle down there and buy a house. But the allure of California, being able to live with him, and being able to grow alone was growing on me.
I had casually considered moving to SF but nothing serious until my mom mentioned it one day in June. From then on, I went on a job application frenzy applying to 20+ jobs a day for a month straight. Some opportunities paned out, and others didn't, but I kept my momentum going, knowing that eventually, something would happen.
It was such a tiring process and I remember receiving rejection email after rejection email. Still, I kept my faith and stayed consistent in my approach.
Eventually I accepted a role at a consulting firm only a 10 min walk from my boyfriend's office and then things started to feel a bit more real. When my flight was booked and when I started packing my entire life into 2 check-in bags, I truly realized what was happening. I really was moving my entire life to San Francisco and leaving everything that I had ever known.
As I mentioned, I had become really close with my parents and grandparents so as soon as my flight was booked, the countdown was on. Every event/outing became known as "the last time we'll do this" and it was so bittersweet. I knew that my family and I would miss each other tremendously but at the same time, they were so excited for my new beginning. Sometimes, you need to let someone go in order for them to grow and flourish.
I tried not to cry in front of my parents because I knew I had to be strong, but today, a week into being here in SF, I was overcome with emotions.
On one hand, I'm having a blast living with the person I love so much - from shopping for our first home together, to cooking meals, and simply just having him around all the time. But on the other hand, I miss my parents and all the familiarities of Canada so much. Everything was so much easier there, everything figured out, with my parents as my guiding pillars. Here, everything needs to be figured out - bank accounts, nearest grocery stores, how to do things around the apartment, cooking, cleaning, everything.
I know that this is such a great learning experience and I've already accomplished so much in my short week here. Growing is never easy and it's when you're the most uncomfortable that you grow the most.
I'm so excited for this new chapter in my life and knowing that I have the blessings of my family makes it so much easier. There is a lump in my throat as I type this because there's nothing that I want more than to feel my parents' arms around me or to take my grandma to the grocery store. But I am so grateful for technology and the ease of which I can message or FaceTime my family, they feel so close and I love that I can keep them updated. I'm also so grateful to be financially able to fly back to Toronto to see my family and vice versa because I know that so often when one leaves to a new country, they're not able to go back home.
Not sure where I'm going with all of this, moving to a new country is such new experience for me. I wanted this post to be as raw as possible - yes California is known as the sunshine state but it's not all butterflies and rainbows. There are so many hardships but so many beautiful memories, and the glory days are still to come.
Sending you lots of love and light - make sure to squeeze your love ones extra tight
-Reina xo
