One Year in London: Following a Dream

On 18 January 2015, I celebrated one year living in London. Twelve months earlier, I had taken a deep breath and boarded a plane in Las Vegas, heading for a city I had never visited and a country where I knew only one person.

It was the start of a big adventure and what I hoped would be a new chapter in my life. One year later, I could say without hesitation that London was everything I had hoped for and more.

Taking the Risk of Moving to London

Looking back, I have no regrets about taking the risk. I got rid of virtually all my belongings, quit my job, left my friends and family and flew to another country to further my education — both academically and culturally.

I had spent most of my life being practical and following a path that never quite suited me. They were choices I had made, but they were not always the right choices for me.

Following a Dream

My mother died at a fairly young age. I sometimes wonder whether she followed any of her dreams or lived the life she had hoped to live.

Sadly, I don’t think I ever asked her about that. I should have. I also wonder what she would have said about my decision to fly away from the United States and try to start a life in a new country. I hope she would have supported it, or at least the idea that I finally followed a dream. I think she would have. My father, step-mom, and daughter do and that means the world to me.

I intended to keep this short and sweet. I had a paper to rewrite, a dissertation to work on and employment to find. But I wanted to pause long enough to celebrate a fantastic first year in London and thank everyone who had been part of the journey. I hoped then—and still hope now—that it might encourage someone else to take a deep breath and go after one of their dreams.

A note from 2026: That first year in London became the beginning of a much longer journey. I had to leave London for a bit, but I still returned to visit as much as possible. But, more than a decade later, London is now home—and I am now a British citizen.