A Special Day

Today is a HOT day, 31 degrees at 1:20 pm and it feels like 38 🌞🌞🌞

Despite the heat, today is a very special day for me ❤️❤️❤️

On August 2, 2004, I moved here as a single mom with my kids from Toronto, my daughter was a teenager, and my son was only 6 years old.

20 years later, my feeling towards this city remains intact: it still is the most enjoyable place I have lived, while both my kids have grown up and now started their new chapter in the states.

Yesterday, in my French class and I compared the two cities from three aspects (size, cost of living and activities). I received very positive comments from the teacher about my reasoning and my command of the French language.

Looking back, here are a few remarkable happenings I feel worth mentioning:

1. A Master's Degree from McGill University in 2006. Pursuing studies was also the main reason I moved to this city 🏫🏫🏫

2. A condo I call "Home": I became a co-owner in 2007 and by the end of this year, I will pay off the mortgage 👍👍👍

3. Two graduations from the same university with six years apart (2014 and 2020). My daughter went on with her Master's degree in England after publishing a book. My son started working for Google after his graduation. They both left the city but have visited me from time to time 👨‍🎓👩‍🎓

4. A proud Toastmasters member. I attended McGill Toastmaster's club meeting the second day after I arrived in Montreal. I tried out different office roles and I won Club President of the Year for 2008-2009. I didn't renew my membership in 2022 due to the online meeting format, otherwise, 2023 would mark a 20-year anniversary as a Toastmasters member, a journey I will always remember🥲🥲🥲

5. A solid support network. I am grateful to have met many different people from different walks of life. With time, I am lucky to add a few into my support network: I made friends with people who share my interests: line dancing, playing cards, dining out, watching movies. Doing activity together with friends keep me sane and fit 🌹🌹🌹

6. An unsuccessful marriage. The lesson learnt is I am responsible for my own happiness, and I should have taken action sooner 🤣🤣🤣

7. A few meaningful employments. I started working shortly after graduation in 2006 and have worked at different places. While I enjoyed working with most of them, what I like the most is working for the government and that journey started in April 2021 🍁🍁🍁

8. A rewarding French learning experience. The real study of French started from December 2020 and it has become a daily affair since then. I finally got my B for oral and I am still working on my French every day to make it better. I am lucky to have encountered some wonderful colleagues who are there to help and practice with me 👍👍👍

9. A lot of activities: visiting parks and museums, doing Tour de Ille, going dancing, watching fireworks.

10. Many memorable trips: from visiting relatives in the states to cruising to different places in the world. They all started here, Montreal, a great place I call home.

Thanks for being a part and making this city a GREAT place to be!