Tag: france
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Il suffit d’une institutrice incroyable
Today I witnessed such grace that it made me weep. Most days I would pass this moment by – there are errands to do, work to be started. But something caught hold of my soul this morning and won’t seem to let go. So off to pen and paper I go. We have been blessed…
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Je me souviendrai
Will I remember that today I am a few minutes late for pick-up at my son’s school. Will I remember the overfilled parking lot, brimming with poorly parked cars and vans. How it always seems to be fathers who stop right there in the roadway to get their children with no regard to others waiting…
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Attendre
He drove an old silver Renault – dented and corroded in places, and it clearly hadn’t been washed in a while. Barely room enough for two, it resembled, as my sons like to say, a clown car. He slowed and rolled down the window to get my attention. “Madame? Vous êtes très sympathique…” he paused, …
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Deuxième étoile à droite
I am surrounded by dark earth, the substrate from which I was born. Eventually I will die and return to it. For now, though, I live here inhabiting a meager concentric circle around this orbiting body. I am pulled forcefully toward the surface – I feel the tug in my soul. An attraction to this…
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Être la mère
I suppose this happens to all parents, but it is a curious thing when your child stands tall enough to look you straight in the eyes. I’m not a short person and I naively thought that my stature would buy me a few more years before my oldest would sprout that tall. But thirteen is…
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Comment on marquez le temps
We are still in winter here. Specks of spring abound, but not as prominently as they will be in a few weeks’ time. Flowers are emerging, adding color and texture to our village. Birds are warming their voices in the sun. But the evenings are still crisp and grey at times and the rains seem…
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Le meteo
Here is today’s weather for Les Alpes Maritimes: Today is expected to be severely stormy but no clouds. Precipitation will be heavy and ongoing but forecasts show minimal accumulation from this highly localized front. Brisk winds of change, the barometer falling like Newton’s apple. Best to dress appropriately for the unexpected. I stare out the…
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L’emergence du printemps
She emerges from absolute nothingness. Bleak, brown, hard-edged. From this she hides her delicate face until she simply can’t stay in the substrate any longer. She has no choice. She must break free. The edges of her tiny petals radiate a passionate violet at the tips. It is a defiant refusal to submit to her…
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Confiance
I gazed at the teetering boulders overhead as we rounded the sharp curves, feeling a bit like Chicken Little. The roadway to Courmes is narrow and winding. The creek lays many meters below the drop-off to the left. To the right steep, jagged rock faces cut into the hills are lined with fences to keep…
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Ce que nous laissons derrière
We hiked in silence today. 35 degrees and gusting winds will do that to a person. Better to tuck your ruddy cheeks into your scarf, pull your hat down a bit lower on your head, and lean into the trail. Hiking in silence does more than conserve your precious heat. It also expands your senses. …
40 Weeks in France 