By Raina, Jason & Juliana | Baguette Bound
We’ve all heard it. When you’re searching for something different, someone will tell you that you can find what you’re looking for right where you are — if you just look hard enough. Don’t do anything too drastic.A relative visiting us recently said exactly that. And Jason had the perfect response.
The Conversation That Said It All
Over dinner one evening, the conversation turned to culture — how the world around us quietly shapes the decisions we make. How it nudges us, in subtle and not-so-subtle ways, toward what it considers most important.
We absorb what the people around us spend their time and money on. We move through systems designed to make certain choices easier than others. We forge our own paths, of course — but the landscape we’re walking through matters.
Then the conversation turned to French culture. Specifically, how it feels to live inside it.
What French Culture Actually Feels Like (From the Inside)
We live village life in Southwest France, so we can only speak to our own experience. But here’s what came to mind. See if any of these resonate with you.
Sundays are genuinely restful. It’s perfectly fine to do nothing. Make a nice meal. Hang out with your family. Go for a walk or read a book. Places close so everyone can have a day to simply be — no guilt for not being “productive.”
Money isn’t the scoreboard. Stores close for two hours at lunch, for vacations, for holidays — even if it costs a few euros. Flaunting wealth is considered bad taste. Nice things are chosen for quality and purpose, not status. The “keeping up with the Joneses” pressure is nearly absent.
Everyday moments get real attention. The care that goes into setting a table or wrapping a package creates a kind of presence. Instead of rushing toward the next thing, you’re actually in the moment.
Pleasure is built into ordinary life. Playing an instrument, painting, going to the movies, reading fiction, sitting at a café for an hour with a coffee and a newspaper — these aren’t treats saved for “someday when I have time.” They’re just regular parts of living.
Kids’ sports are about the kids. The focus is on learning and enjoyment, not rankings or college scholarships. Practices are affordable and fewer in number, which leaves weeknights and weekends breathing room for actual family time.
The generations mix easily and often. Children and the elderly show up to everything, without hesitation. When you’re invited somewhere, nobody asks “are we bringing the kids?” The first time I asked a French friend that question, she looked at me, genuinely confused, and said: “Where else would they go?”
“Yes, But You Could Choose That Anywhere”
As we talked through all of this, our relative made the point that many people make:
“But you can choose to live this way in the U.S.! You are always the one who gets to choose how you live.”
That’s true.
But Jason said it best:
“Yes, but it’s like constantly swimming upstream. That’s exhausting. Why not just live somewhere we can swim with the current?”
And that’s it, really.
We can all choose how we want to live. But it’s a whole lot easier when the people around you are already living that way.
Baguettes and Butter 4eva, ❤️ Raina, Jason & Juliana
