I've been recently inspired to restart this blog. It was my primary outlet during my years living in Asia, but upon returning to the United States, my interest in it dwindled (see Carved to Adorn, the blog my sister and I write, for a glimpse of where my creative energies have been channeled).
With my recent marriage and move to the Boston area, however, I've once again transitioned to a new home and once again struggled to connect with my new surroundings. (Noticing a trend... hmmm?) My poor, dear husband has finally grown tired of me complaining about life in New England, so it's time for me to move past the "I-can't-handle-this-place" stage to one of the truly best stages - exploration and discovery. So as I've done with the last 2 moves, I am going to make a list of 50 things I like about Boston and/or New England. I must confess, it seems a daunting task at the moment, but so did it feel every other time I forced myself to make such a list. It'll grow over the coming weeks and I anticipate, by the time I'm finished, I will truly be able to say "I love this place." Here it goes... 1. Having a home with my husband 2. Apartment windows that look out onto trees 3. Neighbors who a) own horses, and b) ride their horses around the neighborhood 4. Living this close to the ocean - a first! 5. Mike's Pastry Shop 6. The Boston Public Library 7. Hearing Turkey's gobble out the apartment window 8. The commuter rail and the T 9. Finally having somewhere to hang my art collection 10. Lots and lots of used book stores - seriously could not ask for a city with more of them! ~Hannah
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"So maybe what I said before, about listening to too many records messes up your life... maybe there's something in it after all... It seems to me that if you place music (and books, probably, and films, and plays, and anything that makes you feel) at the centre of your being, then you can't afford to sort out your love life, start to think of it as the finished product. You've got to pick at it, keep it alive and in turmoil, you've got to pick at it and unravel it until it all comes apart and you're compelled to start all over again. Maybe we all live life at too high a pitch, those of us who absorb emotional things all day, and as a consequence we can never feel merely content: we have to be unhappy, or ecstatically, head-over-heels happy, and those states are difficult to achieve within a stable, solid relationship."
- Nick Hornby I went to buy some apples from my regular fruit stand this afternoon and starting thinking about the physical difficulties I am facing here in Asia. My fruit seller has lazy eyes and decaying ears and I buy his fruit not because it is the best, but rather because the man stirs up compassion within me. I don't know what causes it or if it's really as bad as I think, but the edges of his ears are often black and wilting.
My heart often breaks as I think about the physical conditions of those living around me, but today I realized I am not too different from them. The harsh environment of this city created by both natural factors and the falleness of man is taking a toll on all of us whether it is my lungs, the fruit sellers ears, the grandma with no teeth bent over double, or the student with gray hairs. The lives of this city's citizens mirror the buildings surrounding them as they crumble under acid rain even as they are built. My body often hurts here, but today's trip to the fruit stand was the beginning of peace and maybe even pride in the pain. I am starting to say, "It's ok" and bow my head because how can I expect to be different from the people I live with? They are in pain, too. Afterall, their ears decay. If the people I live with suffer, why shouldn't I? Of course I long for healing and am seeking medical assistance, but my soul is realizing that suffering alongside the residents of this crumbling city increases my love and pity for them. Two months ago, I was convicted to pursue further indigenization and maybe this is it. I don't want to presume anything, but just maybe this is how my Father wants me to identify with this corner of the world. ~Hannah |
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