This is Peanut Butter Brickle. It is Friday, yet it feels like Monday to me, which feels like Sunday to me, which feels like Thursday to me. Because this whole week has been a spawcation for Digby and I. We’ve had friends to play with at Aunt Veronica’s house, eggies, sunshiney, naps and car rides. So yeah. Every day should feel like a Friday which should feel like a Monday which should feel like a Sunday.
The persons are still in that Italy place. Just a few more days until we get to see them. Yeah, in some ways, it feels like forever since we have seen them. In some ways, the time is flying by. And for their status report yesterday, Girl Person told me all about how they looked for houses on the sides of cliffs that they could not find, getting turned around, asking questions with no answers, many walls, dogs and kindness. And I am happy to relate to you all of this while taking a break from playing with our new friend Jake.
The persons are really enjoying their time in that Italy place eating good food and seeing pretty things. Oh, there are so many pretty things!
Everywhere is a feast for the eyes, imagination and full of things to remember. In the hills, on the sides of the mountains, gazing at the sea…to wonder at it all.
But for the persons, they also came to Italy to see if Digby and I might like it and to find a house. They thought that they had an idea of where the houses were that they wanted to see. They had no addresses, but here, they do not give you addresses. They thought that they could go to any place that sold houses and see the houses. But in that respect, they show you when they would like to show you the houses. And nothing is fast. Nothing is slow. Everything takes time. But what time is it? And where is the bathroom? Can never find a bathroom. You have to be patient, Girl Person says. You have to figure out how to figure stuff out. It is not so easy. And in fact you have to accept that. Right away. The art of doing nothing? That is in high demand in the Italy place.
And if you had so many pretty things to look at and delicious food to eat, I would suppose that being in a hurry doesn’t make much sense at all.
Even the dogs in Italy seem to be perfectly content to wait. Their owners take them to talk to others, to shop, to just wait around for treats and love. Everyone loves everyone else’s dog. They greet each other with “ciao bella!” all the time. It’s ok to wait. Because waiting is enjoying the moment.
And so as the persons tried to find the houses they couldn’t find, get the answers that had no answers to the questions that probably did not make much sense in their bad Italian grammar skills, they looked at each other and decided that the best thing they could do was accept that perhaps this was too much to figure out in a week’s time. Because no one was on their schedule. And they had to go with the flow and perhaps understand that the lessons they were learning were necessary. This was perhaps the best thing for them. The roadblocks were appearing for a reason.
Girl Person said that traveling to other places and other countries certainly makes you realize that the world is much bigger than ourselves, and much smaller than we know. Yes, it took a long time for them to get there on that big bird plane. But the persons in Italy have many of the same concerns, needs and dreams. They just go about those things in different ways. We can’t be impatient. We can’t be angry. Because loving where we live, or where we were born does not give us the right to hate somewhere else, or not show kindness to others in different lands.
After trying to figure out another thing to figure out about the house situation, the persons made a decision. They would find those houses they saw themselves. They would get back on that hiking trail, climb those hills and move those mountains themselves…but in a fun way. And all of those stone walls that have been there for many, many years…they were telling them something important.
Walls were not only meant to keep things out, but they were meant to show the joining of roads and houses and an area. They were meant to contain a path. These walls in the Cinque Terre are rebuilt, over and over again. These dry stone terraces are lovingly cared for by the residents who want to preserve them for others to enjoy and to help their farmlands. So even though these stones look like nothing can hurt them, if they are on their own, they fall. When they are rebuilt together, they stand strong. How much more could be accomplished with kindness and understanding of each other’s cultures and way of life?
You see, dogs may have had this figured out long ago..maybe even before the stone walls. More can be accomplished with kindness, love and understanding.
Learning to slow down and look at even a task we have to do as a process and not a chore is an art.
Let’s learn from each other and even if we love where we live, realize others feel the same.
If you love dogs, it doesn’t mean you can’t love cats.
Loving one breed of dogs doesn’t mean you love other dogs any less. Right? Let’s realize that when we see the good in others, the good in us shines through.
The persons will be trekking through the Cinque Terre themselves today to look for any options that they have available! Stay with them today and look at their Facebook page for updates! This adventure isn’t over yet!
-Peanut Butter Brickle
