Skip to main content

Paris - final day and final thoughts

This morning we had our last cup of coffee and last croissant in silence.  I know that I am full of thoughts and wishes about our trip and I'm sure Bridgete is as well.  We got to the airport in plenty of time.  And far too soon, we were leaving Paris and back in Boston.

There are few things I wanted to say about my trip that didn't seem to fit with my travelogue.  I knew that I would enjoy Paris.  I had read about it and thought about for many years now.  And even though several people had told me beforehand that I would fall in love and want to live there, I took it all with a grain of salt.  I've traveled before and seen some very amazing cities, but nothing compares to Paris.  It is another world.  And it is indeed a world in which I could imagine myself living.  There is a quietness, a peacefulness, an elegance and a dignity to Paris that I have never experienced before.  I've always craved a kind of quiet in my life - but never knew what the quiet was until now.  Because it isn't a quiet that comes from being alone.  I know that too much alone is not good for me - I become depressed and eat and drink too much.   And yet too much time with others in this noisy, pushy, busy world exhausts me.  And I am forever seeking a balance.

It was only a day or less in Paris and I had that balance.  I felt a part of everything and everyone.  I wasn't overwhelmed by people and noise and chatter and distraction.  I was intensely focused and delighted.  I ate and drank far less than I do at home - yet I never felt deprived or denied.  I saw so much beauty that at times, tears would simply gather in my eyes and my heart would ache.  I laughed easily and often.  I felt at home.

This was the perfect place for Bridgete and I to have time together, too.  Without the business of life, the distraction of school and work, we were able to feel again our deep and lasting bond.  To know with just a glance or a nod what the other was thinking, feeling, imagining.

I'll stop here, just because I don't want to cry! I know what I am supposed to do now.  I am to return to Paris as soon and as often as possible. 


There are more of my pictures on Picasa -  link below - and Bridgete, who is a far better photographer than I am, has her photos here.



paris


 

Comments

i hope you get to go back often and that every trip to your home away from home is just as peaceful for you as the first one.
Unknown said…
Thanks for sharing all of your memories and beautiful photos of such a great place. It is wonderful to find your comfort place, I hope you do get back as soon as you want and can! :-)
Beautifully put! You've inspired me to go.

Popular posts from this blog

If you find yourself in the dark, all you can do is sit until your eyes adjust to the blackness.  I don't know who said that, but I sure do feel that way these days. Here's a little bit about me.  I was the seventh child born to my mother and father - and the last.  I was 7 years younger than the youngest and 19 years younger than the eldest.  My mother, who grew up in a family of actors, had started a little theatre group in our home town and after being away from it for so many years, she wasn't about to give it up again.  So I grew up in the theatre.  Played in make-up rooms and costume shops.  Learned how to read by helping actors study lines.  Learned how to build and paint by helping my dad build sets.  And I loved all of it. I loved the stories and the people and the way everyone came together to express ideas.  I still love it.  It's why I studied theatre in college and why I pursued an MFA.  Nothing gives me as much pleasure as taking words from a page and

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING HUMAN

I couldn't sleep last night.  Not an unusual thing these days.  There's a lot on my mind.  But last night I was thinking about social media and how it has changed our world. How it changed my world. About 25 years ago, I was working on my thesis in grad school.  We had a Mac in our home which was not uncommon, but certainly not as common as it is today.  I was introduced to the academic world via Bulletin Boards, User Groups, and the ever popular ListServ.  For those of you too young to know, these were email lists you subscribed to and every day you would get individual emails from people on the list discussing whatever it was you wanted to discuss.  There were listservs for science and research, literature, children, whatever you loved so much you wanted to talk about it with complete strangers.  My choice was movies. I love movies.  I've loved them my whole life.  I would sneak out of my bed and watch the late show on weekends.  I went to the matinee every Saturday. 

It just sucks...

You want to know what the worst part about moderate to severe depression? (using the clinical diagnosis here) It's knowing when those waves hit you that there is something or someone out there that you let get to you. In my case, it's usually a combination of things. I've got multiple projects coming to deadline at work - stress. I'm not sleeping very well because of allergies. I'm not eating like I should be. I'm getting my exercise - walking, yoga - which is a positive because that's usually the first thing to go. And so I'm vulnerable to those triggers and I know it. I avoid mr. ring on his finger 'cause that will just send me over the edge. But I can't keep him from coming onto my floor and sitting down at the cubicle next to me and talking to someone else. So I put on the headphones and hit play on Itunes and what do I get....love songs. Crap. And even he wouldn't get to me if the really big trigger hadn't been flipped jus