The allotted time came and went, more quickly than I anticipated. But I've learned much from life in this small and lovely village. And for this, I am indeed grateful.
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I felt not one bit of hesitancy asking her questions. Because, I think, her answers were so real. There was nothing but pure honesty.
"The only reason I go to America is to visit my kids", she said. "I have absolutely no desire to go otherwise. Everything in America is about money, and everything is so busy, all the time."
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What a joy it is, to have somewhere to call home, no matter where I am - somewhere I can look forward to visiting, and rest assured that I belong.
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It's never been enough to simply see.
We can look at a book, but what good does that do if we don't also seek to understand, to get to know the characters and their personalities?
We can look at a plate of food, but what good does this do if we do not also taste, to savor each unique flavor as part of a whole?
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They love fairies and princess stories. Their short lived conversations are always about magic.
And though they can't quite see it, their youth is brilliantly beautiful, more than every fairytale combined.
"There's hardly any harvest without the proper soil", she said.
The rain, the bugs, the rocks, and the sunshine - they are all completely necessary.
Dissatisfaction.
No matter what you do, no matter where you go. No matter your hair style, your new clothes, that fifth pair of shoes, or brand new phone. No matter the endless hours of screens, the days wasted on television shows. You are never satisfied - thus, you keep going back for more and more. And it never ends.
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Up. Always look up. That's where you'll find it.
The hours of looking down were enough to cause sore and aching bones. Of course, there was no avoiding it. Work is work. There were endless feet of overgrowth. And the plants screamed for air.
It's all fun and innocent...until it becomes destructive.
But what people don't realize, is that it is destructive from the very first sip.
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I cannot settle into the mainstream, for I know then I will be bruised and bent in all the wrong places.
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My most expensive purchase so far: some real whole food (in the tiniest of portions), found in a tucked away cafe desperately in need of business.
It was sure worth the many Euro.
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The Rain.
It came, and it hasn't stopped.
I've never had a day quite like today, you see.
I've been, willfully, removed from my comfort.
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Beginnings of conversation revealed my accent - or lack thereof - and prompted question after question.
My nationality?
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It didn't make much sense, you know, how the ships stood with no direction in the unmanageable mud.
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Their simplicity proves quite the amount of depth. And it is a beautiful Thing.
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