Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Spain then and Spain now

I have always lived my life though rose-colored glasses.  I'm not apologizing for it nor do I feel ashamed to do so.  It's the old adage about whether my glass is half full or half empty.  Mine has always been half full despite burying a child, a crumbled marriage and losing both of my fathers.  My life has been blessed and protected from all the nasties that befall so many.  That doesn't mean I am unaware of the world around me.

In Spain, I'm told there is a 22% unemployment rate. People are hurting and my mind has been focused on genealogy and finding the stories amid the spirits of lives who walked over Spanish soil over 100 years ago.   Its not as if I don't acknowledge the troubles or the dangers around the world but I don't run from them.  I will go to Spain with an open mind and be careful of my surroundings but I absolutely refuse to give in to the fears expressed in the news and allow others to deflate my dreams and holiday.  Nor will I allow terrorists to deny me the right to be who I am and keep me home in a bubble.

Sometimes those rose-colored glasses can help us see others the way children see life...as an adventure and through a vulnerable state of mind.  My heart aches for the pain and suffering around the world but as much as I would like to change it,  I can only cry for the sad throng of humanity and feel blessed to be an American with choices and freedoms to make the kind of trip ahead of me.  I refuse to think my trip is frivolous but instead, a promise for those descendants who crave to know where our family lines began.  A bit melancholy tonight and anxious for Spain to materialize before me, to see the white villages, smell chorizo, taste real Spanish olives, sip Sangria as the orange slice dips and dances around the ice.  13 days before list off.

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