It all began with a drive to JFK.

It all began with a drive to the airport…

Me and my divorced parents in the same car driving to JFK from Connecticut. I asked my dad if he knew how to get there. He said "no, I thought you knew how to get there." Sigh.

When it came time to say goodbye they were both very emotional. I was just too tired to be emotional — until they were out of sight. Then I wanted to run back like a little kid and hug them each. I was their little girl, even though I was a 30 year old woman heading to Greece alone for the summer. Each of them had planned to come visit me during my nearly four months in Greece.

As I waited in the security line, I was carrying three things with me – a leave of absence from Yale, a search for my grandfather’s birth certificate in his village, and the quiet hope of finding love.

As I went through airport security, the guard stared at me and asked,

“Do you play tennis?”

My head tilted sideways “Not really” I said.

He laughed excitedly and said “You look just like Gabriella Sabatini the tennis player!”

That was the beginning of Called to Greece. I had no idea … by the end of that summer everything would be different.

More to come…