Through the thick of spoken German around me, I immediately heard American English spoken. At that moment, it was a gleaming crystal in the dust. I had been traveling in Europe for almost 3 weeks, aimlessly touring, trying to find my ground.

I was magnetized and looked to find its source.

It was a short Asian female standing on the train—clearly with white headphones speaking into her iPhone. I stared at her, perhaps too long, trying to let recognition sink over me.

And then it hit me. It was someone I knew from Method—she was from New York while I was in San Francisco. We never met in person and barely spoke on the phone. And she went to the same graduate school as I did in a nearly equivalent masters program…but a year right before I started.

I hesitated, not quite sure how to introduce myself—knowing how stalkerish and awkward I could be. She probably noticed that I was staring, but she professionally ignored it. At the next stop, she walked out of the train doors…and…I had to take my chances. What was the worst that could happen.

As she was going up to the exit, I tapped her and she paused in her walk. I seized the moment and said, “Are you…?”

The moments after affirmed that my 2011 new year’s resolution was valid. You’ll never know what will happen if you acknowledge someone that you recognize.

“Today is my first day and my last day,” I said on Tuesday in an unwavering voice with bright optimism and slight melancholy.

As with most journeys, there is an end. A neon sign that lights up with the words “You have reached your destination.” Sometimes, it comes up unexpectedly. Other times, it just arrives as anticipated.

On Tuesday, I had my last day at Palm. I also had arrived at my decision to stay in San Francisco—for now, at least. And with that, a big weight lifted.

A few months ago, a friend said to me, “I used to think that not having roots was essential, but now I realized that it really makes a difference.”

It’s not that I am unable to detach myself from everything that I know. Despite growing up here, I only got to know the city in the last 6 years in varying ways and the people I surround myself with are not those from my hometown.

It’s that the personality of this city is the personality that I want to adopt. Even with the overt hipster-ness. The laidbackness. The absurd location-based social networks. The clash of gentrification in the midst of yuppie diversification. It’s right here that I want to stay.