Posts Tagged "Observations"

We weren’t going anywhere. Stuck sitting in a Thursday morning traffic jam is not a fun thing when you have places to go and people to meet. That’s probably what prompted the white pickup truck behind me to finally pull off the road and begin making his way brashly through the closed-down construction of the new lanes. Bypassing the line, I watched him weave past potholes and trenches and “road closed” signs until he finally stopped, dead-ended as his “shortcut” came to an end. As I caught up to him and passed by at last, I smiled triumphantly. It got me thinking, though. Don’t I do that sometimes, too? Don’t I get impatient with my circumstances and try to jump out of line and take a shortcut? Don’t...

She was only trying to help. I smiled at the girl behind the counter at the cafe as she filled up my sun-colored mug with fresh, black coffee.  Everything looked fine at first, the hot liquid steaming from the mug, delightful aroma filling the air, and she was quite generous with the portion. It looked fine, but setting it down on a wobbly table revealed the problem quickly. Three napkins and a wet Bible later, I reflected on the situation. Coffee is good. Generosity is good. The problem comes when things get over the top. She was only trying to help and I was only too happy to get as much extra as I could, but too much of a good thing sometimes just makes a mess. NOTE TO SELF: Be careful what you wish for, and learn to show...

The World Market food section is a lovely place for the senses. I am walking through a cornucopia of brightly colored packages of marzipan and imported biscotti, surrounded by the scent of exotic teas and coffees from other lands. All of a sudden, my senses dim and center on a single package, the other trinkets and goodies quickly forgotten as my drifting eyes lock in on a treasure not seen since that little gift shop in Frankfurt. Bueno. Yes, “Bueno”, one of the many chocolate delicacies offered by the German candy maker Kinder; this is a happy moment. The Bueno bar is something I’ve not seen Stateside before, so finding it here is an unexpected treat. I stop, take out a package and cradle it in my hands. My mouth waters at the thought of the...

I am surrounded by water. A sky of cobalt is above me, rays of morning sun stream through the space between downtown high rises, and all around this concrete jetty are the black lapping waves of the Caloosahatchee River.  A cool breeze nudges the tinkling wind chimes on the deck of a nearby boat as a haphazard collection of birds welcomes the day with a song, and a shadow drifts across my page as the mast of a small powered sailboat passes through the path of the dawn, dragging its life boat and owners’ schedules behind it. The bridge in front of me makes a gentle arc across the river; a highway of asphalt beckoning cars to bring their owners across the water for a busy day ahead.  Their engines provide the background noise, the audio canvas over which all...

All around me are people, squished and squeezed and packed in tightly, seat by seat, row by row, waiting for takeoff. The woman next to me looks so lost, like she’s frightened a bit and just wishing the trip was over. It seems she knows no English, and I am struck by how my own experience these last days in Lebanon helps me to empathize with her. To be alone in a sea of incomprehensible words, unable to read the signs and instructions around you, to be forced to rely only on the most basic of grunts and gestures – that is a frightening thing in any culture. I am realizing more and more that language not only helps us communicate with others, but also helps us know our place in the world. Safety, security, stability, all these needs are bound up in the words...