One Day in an Ordinary Life
With my round belly in front of me, sitting back in the sitting bag, I look over the beautiful green mountains that slowly change their colors in the changing season. Tiny houses spread all across the hillside. Paradise. A dream land. My dream land. A place exactly like out of my own dream how to live. It's been not even a week and I feel like I've spent much more time here. As if this place was calling me on so many levels. It's not only the stunning beauty of the surrounding landscape, the nature, the views, the lotus tents that perfectly engage with their surrounding, creating a fairy tale like atmosphere. It's not the yoga dome with an out of a books view, a place that I wanted to create for my own for such a long time. It's not the luxurious restaurant yurt where we get served the most delicious buffet each and every day, accompanied by fresh lemonade, steaming coffee and compote. The delicious local seasonable veggies, made into tasty dishes, home made by the Georgian დედები, the ცხელი ხაჭაპური, out of the oven every day or the warm oats with granola, dried fruits, nuts, cooked and ახალი ვაშლი და ქლიავი on top. The magic is also not only created by the breath taking sunsets when the clouds are moving between the mountains and the colors of the sky changes between all the shades of orange and pink within only minutes at dawn. It's not the overwhelming feeling when you walk up the two steps into the open wooden house to wash your hands and your eyes cannot let go of the most stunning view over the mountains while you soap your hands, getting into the shower to enjoy the same bliss and overwhelming feeling that's created through the open window while the water is running down your skin, literally becoming part of the mountains while rinsing off the sweat of your skin.
All the outer beauty is what first catches our sight, arriving in this magical place but the true beauty that's creating the heartwarming atmosphere in this unique place is... like always in life... the people. The people that made me feel like I've come to see friends instead of coming to 'work', giving me directly a feeling of home, being welcome, being wanted, being appreciated and trusted. The people who from the first moment told me that this is about having fun and not being exploited, showing me that they care for me as long as I'm here, making this the place to be for me in every aspect of living a happy life.
Sitting over our third or fourth glass of wine for the second time in five days, I tell them how I feel and how much they've been an inspiration for me personally since I got here and started to get to know them a little better. They look at me touched. They say hey Lina but it's also about you. We had two other volunteers here before. With them we almost never spoke. I feel the same energy that I believe that I have felt from them throughout the last days. An instantaneous connection. Coming from a sense for life that's connecting us. Making the most of life, connecting, living in happiness, caring, having fun, being at ease, making life beautiful. I can feel it in every pore.
Arriving trying to reliably and responsibly fulfilling the few tasks that were given to me, the three of them successfully find ways for me to also experience all other kinds of little adventures and fun times around. Making the fun time the focus point instead of our individual tasks; sitting together joking, laughing or taking selfies, I feel like I could not think of anything better than this place. Right here right now. All the small gestures from taking care of me when I burn myself the second time heating the oven for the sauna, over all three of them crawling down with me to the camp fire to ignite it as I seem to fail to do it alone, to the way she asks me all the time about my well being or how I'm feeling. How her husband jokes around, making sure I will be joining the trips even when it's my 'working' day. How we sit together playing Uno on day 2, drinking flasks of wine, arguing laughingly about the rules as if we've been friends for many years.
I'm happy I didn't bring cigarettes. I thought it's good to not have them, otherwise I like to smoke when I drink. I say. This is when I realize we all will be very good friends for our time together. A big wave of astonishment and laughter moves through them. No way Lina. We just made that same decision a week ago you know. We wanted to not smoke anymore. It's already seven days. I recognize the wink in the statement. Still not being serious about quitting but more like finding another partner in crime we giggle like teenagers. It's always when the yoga teachers come here, then we drink and smoke the most. I can't help but feel more than sure that I have just found my kind of people for the time being. Having their heart in the same spot as me. Feeling the same about life and the world. Just being with them makes me feel at ease.
Yesterday becoming the perfect representation for all that I've felt over the last days, joining it all together blending it into a perfect day from waking up until dropping dead at midnight, just when a new day arrives. Starting my day off without yoga students, I practice for myself before I take my beloved oat and fruit breakfast and go on a little walk, speaking to my friend, exploring the surrounding. Returning back to the camp our 'manager' C already introduces me to our afternoon plan of having our little 'adventure' to the river today. I look at him asking if I was allowed to join. Laughingly he's negating, indicating that he has only told me so I wouldn't be allowed to come. He says he'll inform the fifth in the bundle that I was supposed to work with that I would leave and off we go.
After serving a few lemonades to the new arrivals, I find myself squeezed together in the backseat of a local who is bringing us to our starting point, the bridge. Scratching my arm on the yoga mat, my burned skin opens and I have to sigh out loud from the pain. It will dry, it will heal, it was supposed to happen. A mark of a beautiful place.
Crawling down the weeds on the stones we reach the rocky river, crossing it to leave our belongings by the side. Starting our little walk til the end of the river, crossing it about ten times, enjoying the late afternoon sun that's becoming especially beautiful as the light slowly changes and the temperatures adjust to the most comfortable breeze of a late summer afternoon on our skin. Again and again dipping into the water while our legs are constantly cooled by the current flow. After around an hour we arrive at the end. We laugh, we swim, we take pictures. Time to go back. After all I shall still heat up the sauna in the evening.
Finishing off with a little picnic we get picked up by the local supplier, bringing a new delivery from the city. The old mountain vehicle, stuffed up with all the orders, the boys sit in front on the car on top of the lights while I make myself comfortable between the sacs of washing powder, the mushrooms, peaches and other groceries, my legs hanging lose out of the back next to the second man who was in the car, changing his seat for July, our sweet sunshine and the dog to sit more comfortably. The ride takes me back, mesmerizing about all the times before from the very first time when I visited this country and how it made me feel so alive on all levels. Just like the touch of the kitchen lady in the morning when I come to get the daily milk and try out my three words of Georgian and all on a sudden her hard face softens, a smile crossing her lips that I haven’t seen before as she stands beside me, hugging my waste, only ჩემი გოგო would be missing to complete the scene that I’ve been in so many times before. The real local experience, just an ordinary day in Georgia. I feel vibrant, alive, happy. The simple life, providing everything I could ever ask for.
Arriving, I jump out to heat the sauna and stuff in some ახალი ხაჭაპური and მოხარშული ბოსტნეული სადილსთვის. I get involved into a talk with my Georgian colleague, sharing some personal issues with me. I receive a message from July sunshine asking me to come join them. I don't know where they are hiding, only I know what they are doing as they've discussed it earlier at the river excited like little children. Hiding out to secretly have a barbecue with the long missed meat and smoke the cigarettes our SA friend had confessed to have bought in a village before, having another wine time picnic. She's sending me a message back to go down the path behind the slackline. Spontaneously I get up from the table, cutting the conversation, supplying the sauna again, running down the bushes in the darkness of the early night.
Seeing them sitting there enjoying the meat they've been craving so much, is warming my heart. Within a second I have a glass of wine in my hand and our conversations start flowing again like the currency of water in the river earlier. About the language, about our lives and what we wish for. When I run to the sauna the second time to finish off, the wine is finished as well and we move up to the yoga dome. As we also get down to the last cigarettes that we've shared, excited like little children who know they're doing something forbidden, we decide to invite over the one person from the camp who has more, debating over how to do it politely while we get another flask of wine.
The night is fresh and cozy. It's absolutely perfect. I'm in total bliss and happiness. They tell us about their wedding and for the first time I realize how long they've been together, how young they came together and how great they've managed their life together ever since, making such a beautiful couple full of love, care and fun. Going through the difficulties side by side without a doubt that this is what they are supposed to do. When she gets up, she knocks over the glass on the floor, spilling the wine. He says he knew exactly it was going to happen. He knows her so well that he could even feel every thought of her. I smile. I love it. It's so beautiful. I tell them that they are a true inspiration for me. For love. For friendship. For life. They really are. It makes me believe in the good, gives me faith for human kind and our connection to each other. A little breeze is blowing through my hair. Life is wonderful. The night is raw and blissful, slowly coming to an end as we get tired from the wine while time is gradually moving towards midnight. Sleeping hour. Having learned a lot of interesting facts about the life of a pilot, supporting our mutual addiction, we go down, close the doors behind us to find rest after a wonderful day, in nature, with friends, living the life that we chose. I can die right here right now and would not be unhappy C said earlier standing on the bridge. I feel the same. Only no need to die right now. Rather we will like to experience many more of these days that make life so unique. So special and worthy of being lived fully and deeply.
Comments
Post a Comment