Autumn has long been my favourite season, and yes
I know every girl says that right, but for me this love of autumn began long
before pumpkin spice lattes and the idea of autumn fashion. I have been in love with the crispness of the
air and the crunch of the leaves beneath my feet since I was a child. Nothing thrilled me more than raking all the
leaves into a huge pile then jumping into it (at the time I never considered
dog poop or spiders – you will not catch me submerged in leaves now). I loved and still love the notion that the
world is going to sleep for a few months and that soon it will be still, quiet,
peaceful.
I love the rain.
Living in Vancouver while all I ever heard were complaints about the
cold and the wet I felt alive. The sound
of the rain falling in the empty streets while it gently hits my windows as I
lay in bed helps me to clear my mind of the negative thoughts that plague
me. I can let go of tension and take a
moment to just breathe. I relish those
moments. The cleansing feeling of hiking
through the forest with only the sound of rain falling and boots crunching is
euphoric. I will never understand the
disdain for the rain.
Vancouver
The colours of the autumn are incomparable to
those in other seasons. When flowers die
in the summer they fade and wither away, which of course holds its own beauty,
but in autumn as the leaves die they, as Albert Camus said, become
flowers. Bright red, orange and yellow,
such beauty in the decay. There is
nothing quite like the scent of rotting leaves and a hint of frost in the
forest. I mean have you ever driven
around Northern Ontario in October?
There is nowhere in Canada so beautiful.
Algonquin Park, Ontario Canada
Northern Ontario
Of course speaking of October anyone who knows me
well enough knows this is my favourite month.
Not only is it chilly and autumnal but it is approaching Halloween and
there is nothing better than Halloween.
Walks through the leaves, pumpkin patches, Hay Rides, hot chocolate, haunted
houses, scary movies and dressing up spooky while ghouls haunt the night!
Living here in Valladolid I have missed
this. I can of course only speak for the
area I live in Spain but autumn is a bit disappointing here. It of course is not without its own beauty
and charm but it is certainly not the autumn I know and love back home. The leaves turn only yellow and brown but
they do fall and cover the ground so I am still able to take my wanders and
clear my mind. Unfortunately Halloween
just isn’t a thing here. We did find
some small pumpkins, carved them, and had our own spooky celebrations. And of
course it does rain quite a bit here so that is refreshing.
Halloween 2015
I do still very much enjoy the moments I spend
here in the park surrounded by the leaves.
It offers me quite time to reflect on my life. I think about my choices and whether or not
they were what I wanted in the end. It is
true Valladolid has not been what I expected but I certainly do not regret my decision
to come here. Things are not the same as
home, but that’s the point right?
Valladolid
Valladolid
This journey has been nothing short of amazing
and I have learned and grown so much. I
will be forever grateful for being given this opportunity to explore and experience
life in a world that my whole life felt so far away. I have been given a chance to understand
another culture and country while also renewing my love for my own.
I believe that travellers are privileged, not
only because they are able to afford the time to travel, but because they have
the opportunity to see the world through different lenses. We learn how similar and how different life
is around the world. We see places that
to many, myself included for most of my life, are just words and pictures in books,
online or on television. We learn that
as large as the world is, it really is very accessible if we want it to be. We meet people from all over who are also out
to explore the world and it is refreshing to have that familiarity with someone
who understands your desire to wander.
We come to understand that just because something
is normal for us it can be completely alien to others. Being a foreigner has been an experience that
is both terrifying and humbling for me. It
has taught me that I should be kinder and more patient. That when someone speaks broken English I
should admire them for being so brave to attempt to learn a second or third
language. It is not easy and the fact that so many people do it astounds me. Until
being in a foreign country I did not understand just how rude and small minded it
was to hear someone say “If they are going to live in my country they should
learn to speak my language”
I may not agree with everything I see here in Spain
and/or the other countries I have visited but I have learned, and I have grown
and that is something I can always appreciate and take home with me. I am glad that we have spent the past 18
months living here and did not just pass through on vacation because everyday
life in a country is not a vacation. I
have experienced real life in Spain not just a week on the beach on Barcelona.
Maybe it is not the same for everyone, I can of
course only speak to my own experience but being a traveller I have developed such
nostalgia for home. I have always been
in love with Canada, especially Vancouver.
There was not a day that went by that I didn’t at some moment tell
myself how lucky I was to live in such a beautiful place. I know there are people who live in Canada
and do not realize how good they have it, how spoiled we are, how free and privileged
we are. Canada is, in my opinion, the
best country on Earth and I am proud to be from it.
Northern Ontario
Northern Ontario
My desire to travel may never be fulfilled. I hope this is only a beginning for me as
there are so many places I still long to see.
I look forward to the next 6 months here and what they have in
store. However I am looking most forward
to sitting on the back porch with a Timmies and the sound of my familys
laughter or ripping around in the bush shooting the shit with my friends. I look forward to seeing squirrels and raccoon in the yard. Walking through the
woods with the terrifying possibility of a bear encounter.
Most Canadian Picture of Ross :)
Hiking in British Columbia
For now though I am going to enjoy Campo Grande
surrounded by peacocks and brown leaves.
I am going to attempt to pick out a word or two from the conversations
around me and feel proud of myself for learning what I have. I may not be fluent in Spanish but I know
more then I imagined I would 2 years ago.
I may not have always made the best decisions in my life but moving to
Spain was one of the good ones.
Valladolid
Campo Grande, Valladolid
Beautiful reflection Melissa.
ReplyDeleteThank you Tanis :)
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