Day 108: Unexpected family.

There are moments in life where the ordinary or mundane days.

have the little moments that make them suddenly memorable, sometimes extraordinary.

I missed my train this morning and I was the only person at the station.

I went up to this little room where people can go if they want to stay out of the cold as they wait for the train.

I saw a little old woman standing by the window. She saw me come in and smiled.

I smiled and sat down working on a project on my laptop. I could see that she was still looking at me. 

She sits next to me and asks me questions about Facebook, how does it work and what is it for. I noticed that she had an Italian accent.

After I had explained what it was, she shook her head in confusion and defeat. Saying that she will never be able to understand. 

She then asks me where I am from. I told her I was born here, but my family is Korean. 

She told me that she's from a city north of Venice, called Trieste. 

"Its like here.uh..New York" she explained "Sooo many people" she gestured this by moving her arms in sweeping grand gestures.

"Many different kind of people. Asian, Italian, Slovenian, so many" she nodded.

She then told me about her two dogs. Two Pekinese boys. One of them, she explained, was a very friendly dog, the other dog was very mean, 

"Ee hates everybody, eespecially black dogs"

I burst out laughing with that one.

She then told me "You look very beautiful when you smile. Your eyes look like they smile too. Do you have a boyfriend?"

I told her not at the present moment.

She said to me, "ah, do not worry, you will not have too much trouble finding a nice man, but ees more important to focus on your heart first before you geeve it to another man. You don't want to give a broken or a part of your heart to anyone right?"

I teared up a little.

She then told me about her life. How she met her husband in Trieste and then moved to America. They never were able to have children, but they loved each other just the same.

The train was coming soon and we both got out of the waiting room. She told me to be careful while in the city.

"Too many crazy people in the city. Go after nice, pretty girl like you. ees very bad"

We conversed in Italian for awhile. (In what little Italian I could remember) She laughed at my grammer but she applauded me for trying. I was surprised to hear that I could still understand what she was saying. I guess speaking in another language is the only thing thats challenging for me.


It was almost her stop and I was sad to see her go. She squeezed my arm and told me, 


"Remember, love yourself. I love you beautiful girl! Ciao!"

I felt as though a part of me came back.

I

Day 97: Fear

Life is looking a lot better.


I'm moving on from the past more smoothly than before. 

I've been keeping myself busy with projects (and occasional stress venting/craziness/being outrageous with friends)


My classes have been rather exciting to work with, especially since there is a chance for me to go to Haiti for my studio class and Apurimac, Peru for my 'Lighting Design in Developing Countries' course.


I told my parents about this and they weren't all that pleased about the idea. They interjected with stories of people getting kidnapped or getting some tropical disease and dying. It also didn't help that I watched Anthony Bourdain's (I love him) No Reservations: Haiti with my mother. It was generally shot in Port-Au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. Bourdain explained that there isn't really a an answer to the issues that are still trying to be resolved in Haiti. Because each solution could inevitably lead to more problems. My mother voiced her opinions about me going quite loudly, as she saw Bourdain put on globs of hand sanitizer (to lessen the risk of getting Cholera) or the voodoo witch doctors perform rites during Haiti's day of the dead.


But what I admired about this program was that it didn't just show the plight of Haiti, it showed people moving on. For example, local artists and children using the debri to create fantastic pieces of art. 


I understand their fear of me going to these countries. I would be concerned if my child was going someplace where there is either war, disease, or disputes going on. However, fear is a crutch, it prevents things from getting done. My parents like to say, 'better safe than sorry'


If I thought like they did, I would wonder what I would have happened if I had done it. Worse yet, I would regret not doing anything at all. For some things, I tend to jump into situations and then figure out where to go from there. In this case, I don't want fear getting in the way of helping people.


I simply told them that I am not asking for their approval, I am simply letting them know my plans so they don't freak out when I disappear for a few weeks or so.