{"id":429618,"date":"2025-09-16T20:01:16","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T20:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/429618\/"},"modified":"2025-09-16T20:01:16","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T20:01:16","slug":"uprooting-my-family-to-live-in-spain-helped-us-grow-in-unexpected-ways","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/429618\/","title":{"rendered":"Uprooting my family to live in Spain helped us grow in unexpected ways"},"content":{"rendered":"

First Person<\/a> is a daily personal piece submitted by readers. Have a story to tell? See our guidelines at tgam.ca\/essayguide<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Illustration by Jaimie Shelton<\/p>\n

We pulled up to Vancouver International Airport with nine oversized suitcases and three tired but excited kids. It had taken a year of planning \u2013 securing visas, enrolling in schools, navigating tax implications, researching neighbourhoods, leasing an apartment and saying goodbye to family and friends. But we were finally ready. My wife Natasha and I, along with her mother and our three children in tow, were moving to Valencia, Spain.<\/p>\n

When the agent charged us for only five of our nine suitcases, I smiled. It felt like the universe was rooting for us. It was a small gesture by the airline, but in the chaos of change, those small affirmations matter.<\/p>\n

As an executive coach, I\u2019ve spent years helping leaders navigate complexity. I\u2019ve coached through restructures and during volatile periods. But nothing has taught me more about the realities of transformation \u2013 personally and professionally \u2013 than this experience.<\/p>\n

Nearly two years later, as our adventure is coming to a close, here are the lessons that will stay with me. <\/p>\n

First Person: Travel mishaps are just a part of the journey<\/a><\/p>\n

Our move wasn\u2019t just about sunshine, paella or adventure. It was about giving our kids an experience that would shape their identity and world view. And yet, as we settled into this new life, I realized something: Transformation doesn\u2019t always show immediate returns. In fact, it rarely does.<\/p>\n

Our kids, aged 11, 9 and 7, are different now \u2013 more confident and capable. They navigate Valencia\u2019s streets and buses with ease, walk to the grocery store alone and help each other in ways that surprise us. But the real impact? That will take years to emerge. And that\u2019s the hardest part of any change.<\/p>\n

People often ask if life feels easier or slower in Spain. The truth? Parenting is parenting. Conflict doesn\u2019t disappear just because we\u2019re surrounded by a 13th-century cathedral and Roman ruins.<\/p>\n

Our daily life still includes school lunches, arguments over screens and trying to get out the door on time. In fact, those tasks are harder in a new language and culture. The context changed, but the fundamentals didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

After walking the kids to school, Natasha and I often stop at our favourite caf\u00e9. We sit with our coffee and just take in the city: its architecture, its rhythm, the smell of fresh bread from nearby bakeries. These moments weren\u2019t part of the \u201cstrategic plan,\u201d but they\u2019ve become some of the most meaningful.<\/p>\n

Valencia has taught us to slow down. To notice. To let life unfold, rather than trying to control every piece of it.<\/p>\n

First Person: The joys of crossing Canada on the train<\/a><\/p>\n

There have been days when Spain has tested every ounce of our patience. Booking appointments, navigating paperwork, grocery shopping \u2013 these things that were so easy back home now feel like endurance tests.<\/p>\n

Bureaucracy in Spain moves at its own pace. Social norms differ. Customer service expectations are … different. But here\u2019s the truth: Every meaningful transformation comes with friction. If it doesn\u2019t, you\u2019re probably playing it too safe.<\/p>\n

Living abroad has stretched our relationship in ways we didn\u2019t expect. Natasha and I have had moments of tension, loneliness and fatigue. It\u2019s easy in high-stress periods to turn inward. But we\u2019ve learned to keep turning toward each other instead.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve developed the mantra \u201cbeside not against,\u201d to remind ourselves that we\u2019re on the same team \u2013 even when it doesn\u2019t feel that way. That phrase has become our anchor.<\/p>\n

I already know that years from now, we\u2019ll talk about Spain with nostalgia. The crowded festivals, the late-night gelato walks, the sound of church bells echoing off stone walls. One day, it\u2019ll be behind us. That awareness helps me stay present. It reminds me to savour the ordinary moments because they are the ones that matter most. <\/p>\n

I loved travelling with Mom, but where had she picked up this exquisite silk scarf?<\/a><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve used this time abroad to travel extensively. Spain, France, Croatia, Egypt, Italy, Morocco, Greece \u2026 each trip has given our children new perspectives and brought us closer as a family. We ask questions such as, \u201cWhat made you proud today?\u201d or \u201cWhat new thing did you try?\u201d\u2013 questions that help us notice their growth in real time.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve played board games in the French Alps, shared street food in Cairo and had long, silly conversations over late dinners in Rome. These are the connective tissues of our change together.<\/p>\n

Natasha\u2019s 77-year-old mom, Janet, joined us on this adventure without hesitation. She has thrived in ways none of us anticipated, and she has decided to stay in Valencia even after we return to Vancouver. Her willingness to embrace change has unlocked an entirely new chapter of independence and adventure in her life.<\/p>\n

So what did I learn from uprooting our life and moving across the world?<\/p>\n

Change is messy, hard and deeply human. It requires conviction, courage and a willingness to grow \u2013 often in uncomfortable ways. When you allow joy to lead alongside discipline, it\u2019s always worth it.<\/p>\n

Geoff Scales lives in North Vancouver. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"First Person is a daily personal piece submitted by readers. Have a story to tell? See our guidelines…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":429619,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5312],"tags":[2000,299,6961,24789,24298,104],"class_list":{"0":"post-429618","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-spain","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-europe","10":"tag-first-person","11":"tag-noastack","12":"tag-nodelphi","13":"tag-spain"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115215760316385276","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=429618"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429618\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/429619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=429618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=429618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=429618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}