Ok – so let's cut to the chase here why don't we. You may be asking why I am sitting on the balcony of a sixth floor apartment in Antalya, Turkey. So, let me take a minute to explain.
I am currently staring out upon a slowly approaching storm as clouds swallow up the mountains and the sun sets heavy at the end of this productive-less, hungover Sunday. Groggy from a night of new-friend merry making, I clasp onto a cup of chamomile tea and stare out curiously at my new world below me. The storms here have been spoken of quite highly, so I await the coming moments, hours, (who knows) in anticipation – hoping for electrical volts of energy to transport and inspire. Watching a storm for the first time in a new location is always a magical experience – what will the thunder sound like? Crisp and sharp or deep and rumblely? Will the lightening crack with bright wonder and intensity or dance across the sky as if performing a waltz for the mesmerized onlookers below? I have front row seats and it's opening night – need I say more?
I am here on a 90 day tourist visa – one that is clearly marked with “NOT ALLOWED TO WORK” - yet work is exactly what I intend to do– starting tomorrow actually. I have no contract, just a mutual understanding and a handshake, which others may be distrustful of, yet I am relieved of any committal duties, so that brings me a strange sense of calm. No, I do not plan to stay here long – but I do plan to wake up every morning I am here and study the language, find short-cuts through winding, slopping alleys, play nice with the children, make friends not enemies and embrace a culture I know far too little about.
Why? Why not? In a time awash in fear, uncertainty and financial and political turmoil, why not? There are no certainties in life, so trying to surround myself in a false security blanket will only leave me naked when it inevitably comes undone. If the decisions you make really are what define you, I choose my identity to be carved with the lines of paths traversed curiously and courageously. I humbly try to leave trepidation behind, under the auspicious care of my past and baby-step my way to a more promising present. If you need further explanation – I am sorry, for I have none to give. You may find me flaky and careless, fearful for my tumbling fall from grace, but I promise you this; these steps only take me closer, not further from 'enlightenment'... if that is in fact what we are seeking. ;-)
Oh – in case you were wondering, they rumble beautifully.
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