Promenade

The other day, Fay and I went on a really long walk around our neighborhood to enjoy the beautiful weather and see what was in our area. We walked down a street parallel to our own and stumbled upon a beautiful large cemetery filled with flowers and beautiful Mediterranean trees. We came across wild rosemary, cypress trees, bright red and orange flowers and lavender. But the strange thing about one small patch of lavender planted by a grave was that though it is the end of September, the lavender was in bloom. Lavender flowers bloom in July. We thought it was beautiful that flowers that aren't supposed to be in bloom would be at someone's grave. I silently thought of something cliché like perhaps the love with which it was planted allowed for the flowers to grow...you know what? It's very well possible. I'm just going to keep believing that things like that are true :)
We also passed by a couple olive trees which definitely reminded me that I'm in the South of France. Sometimes, I forget exactly where I am and then I see, well, olive trees and pomegranate trees and fig trees and wild rosemary and then I remember.
Then, I showed Fay where La Torse is. La Torse is the name of this big beautiful park on the edge of Aix-en-Provence where I went running and plan on continuing to run. We had some trouble finding the entrance but there are entrances on either side of the park tucked away behind railings next to the street, under over-grown trees and along dirt paths and we finally entered the park. It was lovely:We walked through the entire length of the park along a gurgling creek and I picked up little pretty rocks, nuts fallen from trees, and little flowers to dry along the way. (I've started a collection of pretty pebbles, pieces of sea glasses, interesting-looking nuts and dried flowers) But the best thing EVER inside the park was what Fay and I decided is the PERFECT sitting-tree. With a big wide-trunk and widespread branches revealing a relatively flat area to sit in, it will provide a nice reading or thinking space. Fay decided to climb up into the tree and give it a try.
It was absolutely perfect.

I don't know quite why, but the sunlight that day in the park and all the trees and the creek reminded me of several books that I read when I was little and still pick up every once in a while today, books like Bridge to Terabithia and Tuck Everlasting, those children's books that make you think. And Fay and I certainly did a lot of thinking today, and talking. We talked and talked and talked and talked (all in French!) about everything. About people we love who are far away, old relatives who we wish we knew better, about fatigue resulting from trying to fit in, the loss of character and personality that results from trying to fit in, food, interesting plants, travelling, music we like...it was wonderful. For a while, I got to forgot about missing people and worrying about classes and just talk and look around a little.
It was getting late and we had to get home for our early Rosh Hashanah dinner with our housemates, but before we headed back, Fay showed me one last thing that she had found a while ago: a heart cut out of an old wooden door in an abandoned building.

Fay and I had also talked about how much we've already learned and grown during our time abroad, this last month and a half (already!), and I truly appreciate that I'm starting to learn how to take my time and take a look around to notice tiny details that can make a person smile. Like our little heart in the door, the lavender at the grave.
Well, it was time for dinner and we headed home to help Carmel prepare. It was lovely.