November 26, 2004
Routine
I didn't think living in Europe could become routine, even mundane at times. To me, it was always this place set apart where no one had real lives that become everyday. I didn't think of it being under construction, having delayed buses, sirens blaring. The toiletpaper I thought was strange when I first got here now seems perfectly normal. The charm of carrying my groceries a mile home in little canvas totes has somewhat weakened as the winter weather has strengthened. I no longer notice the cigarette smoke lingering on my coat and in my hair, and the smell of alcohol in the town center or on the breath of teenage boys is commonplace.
The thing is, this may sound negative initially, but if you think about it, it's really positive. I mean, Europe (Innsbruck) is real to me now. Rather than the static, two-dimensional view I always had in my head, I know it for what it really is. I don't want to sound presumptious, and I know that there's still so much that I won't understand and know, but I've changed. My view has changed. Rather than the idyllic Tirol seen in postcards or tourism videos and dvds, I have smelled the drunk on the bus and talked to the cripple by the hospital. I walk past the garbage hidden in bushes and the vandalized billboards, and I still love it. I could live here. I love the people riding bikes in stiletto heels and the old ladies on the bus with hats and brooches and umbrellas with curving handles. I love that I can wear whatever I want. I love walking everywhere I go.
If what you love becomes routine, does that mean you shouldn't love it anymore?
Posted by kea at November 26, 2004 03:22 PM