After my return from Salzburg, I was in a bit of a funk, for no apparent reason. I missed having a car, having all my friends and family nearby, being able to go to my favorite restaurants and bars, and just generally feeling like I belonged. I talked it over with my friend, 2009 fellow Stefan Jäger, and he told me it was normal. He went through it too, apparently, when he did his fellowship in my hometown.

On Tuesday morning, I got up early and went to work with Stefan's mother, a schoolteacher who is hosting me at her home while I am in Klagenfurt. She had asked if I could come talk to her class, who had never heard a native English speaker (except on TV). I was happy to do it and eager to meet the children.

They were adorable. I talked to them in very simple English, telling them about my family, my pets and what I was doing here. I drew a map of the United States and showed them where Florida was. They had lots of questions in English (what's your favorite color? what's your mother's name? do you know any stars?) and we went into the computer lab so we could look at photos of Florida and of my animals and garden on my boyfriend's blog. They seemed excited, and when it was time to go, they all wanted to shake my hand and they asked if I could come back.

It was just what I needed to remember what a cool opportunity this is and how fortunate I am to have it.