Picasso museum: Malaga, Spain
“My granddaughter calls those ‘butterbyes,” he said, pointing to the graphic detail on Jen’s t-shirt.
We smiled at the older man, knowing that he’d struck up conversation with us primarily because he’d heard us speaking English. A language in common is kinship enough. We awed appropriately over his granddaughter’s cuteness and he continued,
“And then we smack her and say, ‘No, you stupid kid.”
“You’re sick!” his wife laughed, giving him a friendly shove.
“Now you’re telling me? After all these years?”
I stood on the marble stairs, one step below the sixty-something couple (or was it seventy-something? They were most likely well-preserved by their good natures) and thought, “Hmmm. It really does still happen.” And I believed in marriage again, even if just for a minute.
We toured the museum, studying Picasso’s love life canvas by canvas. It occurred to me that he changed his mind an awful lot -- the ballerina, the mother of his child Paulo, and countless other muses. It didn’t seem as repugnant as it used to. Maybe I’ve become more realistic about ‘love,’ and changed my expectations of it. I walked through the salas, pausing to fall in love with La Banera, and realized that I’d lost a bit of romantic idealism somewhere. The strange thing was, I didn’t mourn its loss. Mostly because, after our encounter with the couple on the stairs, I knew it’d come back to me eventually.
Fifth Avenue: New York, NY
After reading what Benjamin wrote during his guest spot last week, I have this to say:
Ben made a lot of mistakes in our relationship. And so did I. For every time he let me down or hurt me, there were that many times that I let him. It’s not easy to explain, and I don’t think one, or even fifty blog entries could do it justice. But what I’m getting at is: I don’t credit or blame him, or anyone else, for feeling the way I do about love and romance and the ‘til death do us part mumbo-jumbo.’ It’s been a group effort. Nor do I believe that all hope is lost. There’ll be a day when someone will make me feel like romance is worth all the effort again. Someone who’ll give me the appropriate amount of space, open cans for me, know when to push and when to shut the hell up.
For now, I believe in chemistry, attraction and making good use of a hostel common room. I believe in love for other people; I see it every day. Shiv’s shiny new ring, Stuart’s immigration, a retired couple on a world cruise.
I believe in everything in its own time.
Amen to that!
Posted by: Dani at November 10, 2004 08:50 PMWise.....Very wise....Now believe it!!
Posted by: b at November 10, 2004 09:02 PMisn't that what I just said?
sigh.
reading comprehension...
Posted by: Fish at November 10, 2004 10:18 PMI know all these events along our journey effect and change us in ways too small to notice at the time...like a stream changes the shape of stones over the course of eternity...but in the end? does the sum of those changes result in a better thing? or just simply a different thing?
I suppose that it depends upon what lens you chose to view...my hope is that if not beautiful in the end, i will at least be interesting enough to cause one or two to pause and pick me up before tossing me back into the stream.
I just wanted to say that I loved the picasso museum and as much as i loved the paintings the building was also a work of art...
im so glad you enjoyed your trip...
Posted by: Kelly Fisher at November 11, 2004 10:59 AMThat older couple sounds awesome!
I tend to believe in faith for other people. They believe in God, I believe in them.
Posted by: Michael R at November 11, 2004 11:12 AMHere's hoping for the return of a romance to believe in.
Posted by: Esther at November 11, 2004 11:23 AMWhat I am saying fish is you say everything in it's own time but can you wait for it to come to you? It is like sitting still long enough for the bird to come eat out of your hand. After awhile we lose faith in our belief and chase after what seems to us as elusive. I am sitting still hoping it is worth the wait. Sometimes it is hard to hold on to a goal that appears so far away. My hope is there is a bird behind me I cannot see. For now like you, there are none in front of me.
Sitting still....very still
Posted by: b at November 11, 2004 11:44 AMThank you for putting into words the sensations I myself experienced lately, that small quiet knowledge that I changed somewhere. I believe a large part of that revolves around life changing me when I was not paying attention, or in spite of how hard I used to fight to hold on to my idealism. What I enjoy most about surrendering to the hurt and the dulling of the luster I used to have about romance, careers, yadda yadda yadda is that I find a solid contentment in where I am now. Life seems all the more substancial and enriching because it just is real. I can touch it and see it and taste it without necessarily longing for too much "more." And I don't feel as if I have lost out or sold out because when I see the happy older couple I have hope that maybe I'm on the right path to real happiness and that maybe that an enduring romance will come to me too and if not, well, I just shrug.
(I hope I didn't blather too much in my "comment." I really just wanted to say thank you for putting a focus onto some of my own feelings lately and that maybe I need to take a trip to Spain.)