Where Am I Now?

Where am I now?

That's a question with both a literal and a metaphorical answer. Metaphorically I guess I'm lost. I'm looking for a way to replace my job, but that's really not the whole story. Since I'm going to be honest, I'll add that my personal life is shaky and my family situation is a slowly recovering disaster.

And did I mention I turn 30 this year? I've never been one of those people who think anything over 25 is going downhill - I've always believed that life only gets better as we sharpen our abilities and our insight - but 30 is still a milestone and I wish I had something "adult" to show for my three decades of effort, something like a serious relationship or a 401k.

Lucky for me, the literal answer to "where am I now" is a lot more satisfying. Right now I'm in Cagliari, Sardinia, one of my favorite cities in the world, which just happens to be located on the south coast of a beautiful Mediterranean island. An island that - I've discovered - most Americans can't locate on a map. Maybe that's why I love Sardinia so much, and I do love it, because I return here almost every year. Sardinia feels authentic and undiscovered. You can't count on people speaking English here and if you venture inward from the coast even a little bit people will ask you what on earth you're doing in Sardinia. Travelers are unusual enough for people to stare at you and strange enough that most people leave you alone (which can be a real godsend for a woman traveling da sola).

So yes, I'm having a crisis, but at least I'm having one in a beautiful, exotic place. And the beauty and the exoticism help. As I lose myself in the narrow stone streets of Cagliari's medieval castello, stopping to duck inside ornate churches and chic modern bars, I'm reminded that there's a lot I still have to discover about this city I know so well. Perhaps I'll find the same to be true of my life.

Copyright 2010 Sara Harding