Article December 3, 2007 Issue

At home in the heart of Paris

BY MYRIAM BETOUCHE

For years, I wanted to live inside the city of Paris. I'd been commuting from the suburbs to my job downtown, sometimes sitting in many hours of traffic each day.

After three years of casually searching for apartments, I wasn't finding anything suitable. The price of the market for "inside Paris" was still way too high for what I could afford, even despite a rise in my income. Friends kept telling me that I should just forget about my wish to have a nice, quiet place in the city. They would often laugh and say things like, "Impossible. You want the countryside in Paris!"

But I felt that this move would be a progressive step. Not only would it reduce my commute, but it would help me be closer to several Christian Science branch churches inside Paris. This move would also help educate me about important issues affecting the heart of the city—issues that I could address in my prayers.