Ah, endings and beginnings. Circles. I leave Paris today -- longing to stay longer, but rested and ready for the next phase. Paris has been a beautiful bookend to each side of the last decade of my life. Ten years ago I left Paris, wide-eyed, naïve, uncertain of the college experience waiting for me, and horribly "in love" with my high school crush. Ten years later I am leaving Paris again, still able to widen my eyes, wiser, again uncertain of what lies ahead, and wonderfully experienced in a host of ways I never would have imagined ten years ago.
I finished my Paris journey yesterday at La Place de Contrescarpe, just around the corner from Hemingway and Hadley's flat. I drank a beer and let the past week, then month, then year, then three years, and then decade wash over me, each period marked by its own wave of salt and sand and water.
Paris has been a deliciously refreshing palate-cleanser -- a sorbet that sits on the edge of your tongue, so good and so cool that you just want to hold it there until it starts to burn a bit, then melt. The choice is either to swallow or spit. The next course is waiting -- and if you swallow, you'll get to taste every aspect of what that dish holds. Today, I'm swallowing. Au revoir, Paris!
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I haven't posted this week because I've just been doing, doing, doing. So below is the list w/ commentary - enjoy!
Saturday - workshop at Shakespeare and Company: I read "The Mango Tree" in a library, over-looking the Seine and Notre Dame, received wonderful feedback and good thoughts to consider, met wonderful, new and extremely talented people, had beers with said people, and then met Anja to go to a jazz club. A yummy day.
Sunday - I slept in and had a beautifully lazy day lounging on the top of a roof during a BBQ hosted by new friends. At some point in my life, I would like to live where I can have a rooftop garden...enchanting.
Monday - wandering, lots of walking (partially due to train malfunction), cello concert in front of Shakespeare and Company, eating of best falafel EVER, evening at Au Chat Noir café for Spoken Word Paris - an open mic night for anyone who wants to try out their stuff in front of an audience. I read a new poem (below) for the Ghana collection, and chatted and drank the hours away with some of the people I had met on Saturday until they kicked us out of the bar at 2.
Tuesday - rented a bike and spent the days roaming the old hunting grounds of Versailles. Beautiful. Much of the time, it was just me, my bike, the sunshine and a sheep or horse. Ate lunch with my feet cooling in the canal as I watched the rowboats and swans float by.
Wednesday - explored the chic side of Paris with new friend Gabriella. Walked in Hermès, drooled, bought the best macarons in the world at Ladurèe, lunched in a cafè...later that night saw Batman!!! Loved it. Just loved it.
Thursday - farewells to all previous and current locations of Shakespeare and Company, wandering of favorite streets, lunch with Sharon and Ricky Nuckols and two grandsons (friends from Dunwoody), final drink, fixing of farewell and thank you dinner for Andrea and Anja, evening stroll looking at lovely French houses, started the packing feat.
Here is the poem I read - not sure about it yet, but since I read it already, I figured I'd post it. It is still untitled, and very much a draft.
[Untitled]
on the hottest days
near Christmastime
i'd hop
on one foot then the other
until my burning soles
could take no more
then i'd run on tip-toe
to the veranda
and sinking against
the outer wall lean
to press my cheek
to the ceramic
and soak
up the cool
then if the heat didn't press
me
inside I would climb
our compound wall
and sit on top
under the fire tree
below
our housekeeper sold
groundnuts
sweets
verbena-scented
hand-salve
i would strip the fan-
like branches
and toss
them into the still
hot air
pretending
they were snowflakes
i'd never seen
and i was the angel
who made it snow
whenever little children
prayed
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