There is so much of me that you can’t see because I don’t always have the words. This morning at the gym, a man took weights from the machine I was clearly using. If you go to the gym, you know there is a basic etiquette: don’t take weights from someone else’s machine, put your own weights away, throw away your used tissues. None of this should need explaining. When I protested in French, he waved me off. But I persisted. Eventually, he put the weights back. When I finished,

You may not need a support group. There’s no right way to “expat.” Maybe it’s enough support for you to head to an Irish bar for a pint and watch a game, or to meet up with other English speakers over an apéritif. Those things matter. They help us integrate, laugh, exchange tips, and feel a little less alone. And yet, some parts of living abroad are hard to bring into casual conversation at informal gatherings. It can be difficult to simply say this is really, really hard. It