Sunday Musings

Lots of sun time, play and social gatherings have brought forth today's musings.

I love the sun this time of year. There's still the reminder of winter when the wind gently blows and yet, the sun gives you this perfect sense of warmth. It awakens in you the absolute need for its presence in your life. I'm not one to wear sunscreen, and even though a part of me wonders if I should take that pre-caution at times, I have a difficult time fathoming how something so life-giving could pose such a big health risk. Anyway, lots of park-playing/walking/letting the sun shine on the face/ball-time for the pooch yesterday.

We visited with our friends/neighbors late in the afternoon who are residing here temporarily from Palestine. Wonderful people. Beautiful children. So generous, authentic, so caring. So family oriented. Made me long to be one of them, well as long as I could maintain my western feminine mystique and charm. It's fascinating, to someone like myself, to get a perspective of life from a different culture, especially with the horrific conditions being played out over there. They spoke of the military check points, the rationing for water and food. 20% of Palestine land has been lost/taken. When we weren't discussing this, we were drinking coffee. I had my first taste of authentic turkish coffee yesterday. Yowza! Ass-kicking coffee is what they should call it. Strong. Bold. Lots of ampage. Mr. Nina had 3x what I did (I ended up settling for juice). Normally a chatterbox in his own way, this time I couldn't get him to stop. We have a special signal (that comes from me most often) when one of us believes the other to be overpowering a conversation whilst amongst a group of people. I must've given that signal 10 times before I finally just let him go at it. The after-effect? The crash and need for nap, but there was no time for that. We had a party to attend.

It seems whenever I attend a gathering and meet new people, at least one person swears they know me from somewhere. Last night I had such an experience. "I know you," he insisted. Nope. Never met you, I said. "I don't care. I've seen your face. You're familiar." I said maybe it was just that inner connection we all share. He then went on to explain how there are 14 different types of faces, so the familiarity factor is bound to come into play. I hadn't heard of that and so I don't know if that's true, and being by the end of the evening and several glasses of wine he didn't even know who I was, I wasn't sure what to make of the whole experience, other than I was glad I chose to eat more from the chip and veggie platter than I did drink from the bar. What also often happens to me when I attend a party is I seem to find someone who is suffering or hurting in some way and I end up being counselor. Or maybe they find me. I'm not complaining. It makes me feel good, it centers me, reminding me of how alike we all really are at the core, and besides, I would much rather talk about real life experiences than (try to) talk cocktail talk over loud music. Although, I must admit, it would be nice for once if I could be the "patient", swap roles.

The highlight of my day would have to be the (unexpected) hug I received from a little girl. It was one of those shy, lean-into-you hugs, where the child hesitates but smiles at the same time, excuding the overwhelming desire to melt into you while wondering if that would be ok. A hug, especially from a child, not ok with Nina? That is an impossibility. We need more hugs. Hugs say I like you, I love you, I care. Just one of those many ways in which we're alike.