Well, I’m in my final days of living in Cocles. I’m excited to go back to the States for a few weeks and also excited to go live near the lake when I return. But I am sort of sad to leave here in a way. I think it takes a few months to settle in somewhere at the very minimum and I was just beginning to feel that way. I had started waving or saying hi to people I knew on the street, like I was no longer the new kid on the block anymore. I was one of the few long term people that was still at the Center. I started to know when the clouds meant rain or not. My Spanish even got a little better! I can see how the place could grow on you, but still…there are things I will not miss.
I went to breakfast with my neighbor this morning and saw this poster hanging up that really spoke to me:
It’s a little blurry, but it says:
Advice from a TREE
Stand tall and proud
Sink your roots into the earth
Be content with your natural beauty
Go out on a limb (!)
Drink plenty of water
Remember your roots
Enjoy the view
What great advice, huh? All of the things I’m trying to do summed up in this one poem. I love it!
So I took a final look around, not knowing if I’ll ever see the place again and here are some pictures.
Hi Steph, We’re back from the wilds “if you can call our experience in peaceful Wales ‘the wilds’ “. Nothing like where you’ve been living but like you, I felt mixed emotions about leaving. Seeing the sea from your camera lens was quite different from seeing it from mine in Pembrokeshire. Both lovely views of salt water and beaches but hard to believe we are sharing the same planet. I know you will miss people and ocean and animals when you return to the US – but small bugs will be a definite improvement! If you’re coming to Texas we’ve got room for you! We do have tree roaches but they pale in comparison to those things where you’ve been living. And we have snakes to keep you company. Come on, Girl! And that goes for your Mom and Ed, too!