Journey With Us Through Time

During our time together, Mateusz and I have had a lot of firsts together. It is beautiful to share the things you enjoy with someone who is as willing to tackle life’s adventures with you and see the thrill of excitement, curiosity, or disappointment on the others face. Either way there is no love lost because we all have different likes, dislikes, cultures, upbringings, and societal norms. Except, Mateusz will not give up until you “like” it. Ugh!!! He so reminds me of my Dad and Nikima and I love both of them dearly so I guess it is fine.

After visiting Mateusz in September for a week our next planned visit was going to be in November for Thanksgiving. But, this was too long of a wait for Mateusz. On Wednesday, October 23, 2019 Mateusz calls me and asks if he flies to New York City will I be able to fly him to Columbia, SC. And I am pissed! Because we had a conversation several times about it being too expensive for him to fly to Columbia for a weekend. He did not care because he could not go another week without seeing me in person.

He flew into Charlotte, NC on Friday evening and I picked him up. On a very rainy Saturday afternoon we were at Mateusz’s first USA College Football game for the University of South Carolina (U of SC) and at his first tailgate. We did not arrive to the football game until after halftime because if your friends do tailgates like mine, you understand. *wink, wink* LoL!

This weekend we were helping my friend Ally celebrate her birthday and it was definitely a event filled weekend. To include dinners, football, brunch, and A LOT of laughter with drinks. By Sunday morning just before Ally’s Birthday Brunch I drive to Charlotte to drop Mateusz off at the airport to begin his journey back to Poland. Our total time together was around 36 hours and he spent almost the same amount of time traveling to see me. I think he loves me. Hmmm.

November 2019 and Mateusz gets to experience his first Thanksgiving! So, I get this question often and no they do not celebrate Thanksgiving in Poland. LoL! I personally celebrate the events that surround Thanksgiving more over than the American meaning of Thanksgiving. And Mateusz is definitely aware of this.

I love the time I get to spend with my family and friends, the break from the everyday routine, and time off from work. I would say Mateusz enjoyed his time with my family, friends, and me. He was able to participate in his first U of SC/Clemson Tailgate, his first family run (organized by me), fish and grits for the first time, and he learned how to give a proper massage by my Massage Therapist, Sheanah owner of SheMassage. I am not sure she does this anymore. *shrug*

And just like that I was able to uphold my end of the bargain to come to Poland for more than a week to experience more of what Poland had to offer with less urgency and more rest in between trips. I was able to dress up and eat dinner with his family on Christmas Eve for the first time at a Wigilia. We then went to Zakopone so I could see the city during the Christmas time. On to snowboarding and I can definitely say that I will be the cute lady at the bar holding a cold beer watching Mateusz have fun snowboarding. Oh! I will slide down the bunny hill with the children, I will do that. LoL!

After the New Year’s Eve celebration with friends in the photography studio, I went ice skating for the first time and I can say it is not too different from rollerblading. Which I had not done since I was 10 years old. I think skating is something that I have been doing since I was able to walk. So, ice skating was not to difficult to get the hang of.

Now on tomorrow morning we will be off to Rome, Italy and the Vatican City we go! This was one of the most affordable trips I have gone on since I started traveling. We rented a room in the middle of the city and were a 10-20 minutes walk from all of the sites we wanted to go to. It was breathtakingly beautiful! And I will insert my disclaimer now… LEAVE YOUR HEELS AT HOME. Again, LEAVE YOUR HEELS AT HOME! I tried being cute one night and it was a terrible idea. Sneakers are the only thing you need. Period POOH!

After a few weeks apart, Mateusz and I were able to celebrate our first Valentine’s Day together a week later. It was awesomesauce! We went to the Beer Festival in Columbia with my Dad and Stepmother, Tyra. Then, we were joined by Kiem and Tom for dinner. It was a totally awesome weekend full of family, fun, and laughter. I really enjoy my families company and it makes my heart happy that Mateusz has fun when he is with them also.

Throughout this journey Mateusz and I have had many firsts and will continue to be the hand that pulls, pushes, or grabs the other out of their comfort zone, but we know that those hands are also attached to the arms that are always a supportive embrace in the time of need. It is crazy because I could have never imagined being this vulnerable with someone in such a short amount of time and with no regrets.