Is it really that time of year again?
Why, yes, I do believe it's CHOCOLATE SEASON!!
When I went next door to the bakery this morning, I noticed that the table of Easter Chocolates is already up! I was quickly reminded that Easter is only three weeks away.
That started me thinking about how all new this seemed to us last year at this time. As we took a morning walk around town to soak up the sunshine and see all the spring plants starting to bloom, JM and I had trouble remembering what it was like to feel as if we were strangers here. It seems so odd that that was only a little over a year ago.
For example, on our walk yesterday, we saw at least a dozen people who have become our friends; we stopped to chat with each of them and hear the latest news. Then, last night after dinner, we walked around and saw another half-dozen friends and acquaintances. We capped off the evening by stopping to visit Yves and Hélène and play a few rounds of tarot. It all seems so natural.
I've been corresponding with people on a forum where many of the posters are in other parts of France, and I have come to the conclusion that our experience is not at all the same as what others go through. And, I'm grateful for what we have here. Clearly, things could have been very different. I don't really know why Chalabre is the way that it is; but I'm certainly aware that we are lucky to have found it.
JM and I also reflected on how different things might have been had we chosen a house on the outskirts of a village, or even one with its own garden. For example, if we'd had a garden like we did in L.A., we would certainly have been less inclined to take Maggie on walks, she could have just gone in and out at will. But our walks with Maggie have been good for all of us, thus a "negative," no garden, became a "positive," more social interraction.
It's good to remember these things periodically so we don't become too complacent in our new lives.
Ciao for now -- And don't forget to SPRING FORWARD!
Randy
When I went next door to the bakery this morning, I noticed that the table of Easter Chocolates is already up! I was quickly reminded that Easter is only three weeks away.
That started me thinking about how all new this seemed to us last year at this time. As we took a morning walk around town to soak up the sunshine and see all the spring plants starting to bloom, JM and I had trouble remembering what it was like to feel as if we were strangers here. It seems so odd that that was only a little over a year ago.
For example, on our walk yesterday, we saw at least a dozen people who have become our friends; we stopped to chat with each of them and hear the latest news. Then, last night after dinner, we walked around and saw another half-dozen friends and acquaintances. We capped off the evening by stopping to visit Yves and Hélène and play a few rounds of tarot. It all seems so natural.
I've been corresponding with people on a forum where many of the posters are in other parts of France, and I have come to the conclusion that our experience is not at all the same as what others go through. And, I'm grateful for what we have here. Clearly, things could have been very different. I don't really know why Chalabre is the way that it is; but I'm certainly aware that we are lucky to have found it.
JM and I also reflected on how different things might have been had we chosen a house on the outskirts of a village, or even one with its own garden. For example, if we'd had a garden like we did in L.A., we would certainly have been less inclined to take Maggie on walks, she could have just gone in and out at will. But our walks with Maggie have been good for all of us, thus a "negative," no garden, became a "positive," more social interraction.
It's good to remember these things periodically so we don't become too complacent in our new lives.
Ciao for now -- And don't forget to SPRING FORWARD!
Randy
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