I’ve now been in Berlin for exactly three months. And everything has changed.

I moved into my own place on the 1st of October in a part of town called Kreuzberg. It’s obviously the cool part. I’m 5 min walking distance from all sorts of public transport, and many cool bars and restaurants. But walking is for schmucks so I bought an old, upright, single speed bike with coaster brakes to cruise around town. I also bought a new bed. That’s a long boring story which ended with a new bed. If you’re interested, just ask next time you literally have nothing else going on in your life.

I went to Oktoberfest, and survived. (This one you’ll have to clear your schedule to hear)

I just signed a new employment contract to join a company called Envio Systems – smart building technology made affordable – as the Director of Strategic Partnerships. I left Circ over a month ago, and I’ve taken the last six weeks of ‘funemployment’ to build some networks, and make some intentional decisions about what I want to be when I grow up. Step 1: Choose a company based on values, culture, and my ability to thrive. I look forward to starting on Monday!

I have a new partner in crime that makes exploring this new city, and this new life, extra fun and meaningful. We met at Circ in my first week of work, broke all my rules of never dating a colleague (again), and have started to build a little life and community here in Berlin. I’m also learning Spanish, rapidamente, to avoid sounding foolish when I meet his friends and family in Buenos Aires for Christmas. Ask me how my German is going…

I have started to build a community with the friends I’ve made in Berlin, both through work and through friends of friends worldwide. This has been my most important endeavor. I hosted a Friendsgiving dinner last Saturday to have a reason to consume 2,000 calories in one meal, savour the familiar flavors of my renditions of mom’s cooking, and bribe new friends to hang out with me. Minus the skinny organic chickens, it seems to have gone exactly according to plan.

Life is great. Even when it’s not. Moving to Berlin turned out to be nothing like what I expected or imagined. And for that I’m thankful. It’s been harder, lots of tears, lots of existential questioning, lots of putting myself out there, and lots of intuitive movements guided by the universe. It’s also been a lot of love, new levels of creativity, and a much sharper sense of self and others.

This thanksgiving, I’m thankful for being exactly who I am, exactly where I am, and at exactly this time. I’m thankful for the family, friends, and forces at play that have brought me here. It’s hard to put into words what this year, and this life are teaching me. The way my mind and heart have expanded and how totally uncomfortable it feels. We don’t get to choose all of the events in our lives, but we do get to choose what we take from them, and who we become.