Six years
Six years ago I came back to Canada from Israel. I was such a different person then - different from how I was before, and different from how I am now. I was less judicious and diplomatic, to be sure, but much, much more optimistic, peaceful, hopeful, romantic, fearless.
I was reflecting on some very vivid flashbacks of that time in my life, today. Oddly, all it usually takes to bring my memories rushing back is the song "White Flag" by Dido, which was playing on the radio in the car after I was picked up from the airport in Vancouver. It was such an enigmatically pivotal time of my life.
I wish I could pin down what exactly has changed since then. Well, I stopped posting on LiveJournal, for one thing. I've faced down so much darkness in the meantime (and even the light I've had has often seemed very dim), but that describes my experience in Israel as well. Yet somehow, in spite of myself, I came out of that without burnout or bitterness. And when I hear that song, when I think back, I can smell it, taste it, remember exactly what it felt like... but I can't figure out how to reclaim it.
Here's a good reference post: http://pifactorial.livejournal.com/16087.html
I was reflecting on some very vivid flashbacks of that time in my life, today. Oddly, all it usually takes to bring my memories rushing back is the song "White Flag" by Dido, which was playing on the radio in the car after I was picked up from the airport in Vancouver. It was such an enigmatically pivotal time of my life.
I wish I could pin down what exactly has changed since then. Well, I stopped posting on LiveJournal, for one thing. I've faced down so much darkness in the meantime (and even the light I've had has often seemed very dim), but that describes my experience in Israel as well. Yet somehow, in spite of myself, I came out of that without burnout or bitterness. And when I hear that song, when I think back, I can smell it, taste it, remember exactly what it felt like... but I can't figure out how to reclaim it.
Here's a good reference post: http://pifactorial.livejournal.com/16087.html