It’s airport time again.  I finally have the energy to do some writing.  So here are two experiences from yesterday.

***

It was quiet in the morning in Barcelona Cathedral.  I’m happy that Jagger too feels the wonder of sacred spaces, whether it’s a church or someone’s laundry hanging from a high balcony.

Yesterday, I posted six photos of the cathedral that for me capture the spirit of the place.  There was vastness in the sanctuary, a soft light, silence.

A curving walkway went behind the altar, and back there this is what I saw:

Whether you’re a Christian or not, we can all feel the pain of the man.  I stared upwards.

And upwards again …

***

And then there’s Part Two of my reminiscing!  Why the exclamation mark, you ask?  It’s a funny story.

Some of us in the Evolutionary Collective have taken on a heightened responsibility.  We’ve agreed to be at certain meetings on Zoom, unless there’s an emergency.  And a vacation in Barcelona doesn’t qualify!

I had a choice yesterday.  Come online at 5:00 pm for an hour … or show up at 2:00 am.  Since most of our members live in North America, the times are most friendly for them.

While Jagger was exploring the Gaudi beauty of Park Guell, I went searching for a place that (1) had Internet and (2) was quiet.

Google Maps pointed me to a “park” but when I entered a custodian waved me away.  “Privato!”

I roamed the streets and found a kids’ park.  Didn’t meet the “quiet” requirement.  But just down the path was an empty dog park.  Perfect.  I sat and waited for 5:00.

At 4:50, here came a dog and their owner.  He was calm … actually both of them.

But then, at maybe 4:57, as I was already online for the meeting, a second dog reared its lovely head.  Now the barking!

I was on mute as the teacher started talking and some participants were sharing.  But I knew the time would come when I’d be paired with one person or two for a practice.  I smiled at the possibilities.

By the time I unmuted, six dogs were flying around the small park, chasing each other and making their presence known verbally.  I explained the situation to my partners.  They too smiled.  “A dog just blasted by my left foot!”

When the meeting ended, the dog count was down to two … and a fine time was had by all.  Now I’m laughing.

***

On to tomorrow and more Barcelona memories

Again the end of the day leaves me yearning for rest.  And so photos without captions greet you.  The first six have Jagger and me out and about in Barcelona and the second six reveal the beauty of the city’s cathedral.

Over the next few days, I plan to repeat some pictures and tell you about the moments I felt.

But not tonight.

Will I ever have the energy to write words again?  Maybe tomorrow.

Until paragraphs return to my finger, here are the photos of today that shine for me:

I’m so tired at the end of our Barcelona day.  I don’t have the oomph to say funny things, tender things … any things.

This city is shocking, alive, musical, joyous.

Here are a few photos and one rockin’ video!

Until tomorrow …

Take a look at the business card in Jagger’s hand.  We went for breakfast at Jagger’s on the Vrijdagmarkt.  Franky, one of the owners, took the picture.  He said that “jagger” means an old person with a zest for life.  So … someday Jagger will be a jagger!

So many folks joined Franky today in welcoming my nephew to Gent:

1.  Tiberieu at The Cobbler, offering us a free glass of champagne.

2.  Yanisha at The Cobbler, writing down suggestions for what to see in Barcelona.  We fly tomorrow!

3.  Harm at Arpeggio Music.  He’s the one who rented me a cello a year ago and encouraged me to enroll in the Poel music school.  (I did!)

4.  Darlene, the owner of Café de Poel, who said she would welcome us at her café after we return from Spain.

5.  Some Poel employee, who opened the door of the school on a bank holiday so we could sit in the courtyard and listen to a soprano stretching to reach the notes of a piece she’s learning.

6.  The mom and pop owners of Café Folklore, who have been serving good Belgian beer for forty years.

7.  Anna, the MC for the open mic sessions at Minard, stopping us on the street to say hi.

8.  Arjen, a barista at IZY Coffee, waving at us through the window of my cappuccino home.

9.  Dirk, my neighbour downstairs, ushering us into his apartment resplendent with raucous colours.  He filled us with coffee and chocolate.

10.  And … as Jagger and I were walking to our dinner restaurant on the Sleepstraat, there sat Lie and her husband at a table on the sidewalk.  She also works at The Cobbler.  Her smile to both of us said it all.

***

It’s so true …

There is love in the world

It’s closing in on midnight and I’d love to tell you about our day.  My eyes, however, are slowly sinking in the west.

I could launch into “We did this and this and this … and that” but it would be boring.  Tiny uninspired paragraphs.

No, I’ll focus on one happening.

I was surprised that yesterday Jagger said he wanted to go into a church.  Today was the day.

St. Bavo’s Cathedral is huge and echoey.  We walked in.  An airport-like stretch of straps and stands prevented us from exploring the sanctuary.  There was a Mass going on, and the pews were two-thirds full.

After a few minutes of onlooking, I asked a volunteer if we could sit down among the faithful.  He smiled and said yes.

This was my view:

The vaulted ceiling, the soft light through the windows, the statues imbued with grace … all was here.

The Bible readings flowed in Dutch, as did the words of the head priest.  Then he began to sing, interspersed with we the congregation responding in song.  His baritone voice carried me away.  His presence reached the nooks and crannies of the church.  I was taken.

In front of me sat a family of seven – mom, dad, three young girls and two young boys.  I stared.  There were soft moments of eye contact mom/daughter, dad/daughter and sister/sister.  One would touch another and the second would respond in kind.

One redheaded girl sat nestled into her dad’s chest.  You can just see a bit of her hair.  She often had her hand resting on his back.  I sat loving them all.

As the service ended, the priests and assistants walked slowly down the middle aisle.  The head priest made eye contact with nearby parishioners, accompanied by many smiles.

The family was standing to leave.  I paused beside mom and said …

I love to see the love in your family

Her eyes glistened and she put a hand on my shoulder

All was right with the world

Jagger got up yesterday in Western Canada at 4:00 am his time to catch a plane.

I got up today in Belgium at 4:30 am my time to catch a bus and a train.

We’ve spent the last hour (7:30 till 8:30 pm my time) … sleeping.

In between the adventure has begun.

I made it to the Arrivals gate at Brussels Airport by 7:40 am, just as Jagger’s plane was touching down. 

As he was going through Customs and gathering his luggage, I watched the flow of humanity passing before me.  All shapes, sizes, cultures, races, ages, energy levels and personalities of human beings.  Some alone and some together, some adored by loved ones and some invisible.

One tiny boy carried by papa saw the waiting eyes of grandma and fell into her arms.  There was a connection between the two that began ten metres away.

Minutes later, a young man of 20, who lives near the foot of the Rocky Mountains, was hauling his green suitcase towards me.

We hugged.  We smiled.  We remembered past good times.  It’s been nearly two years.

Jagger was quiet as old Brussels and then the emerald fields of rural Belgium unwound before us from the train.  And then some stunning architecture from the bus in Gent.

The morning bustle of walkers, cyclists and delivery trucks greeted us on the cobblestones of my street – the Oudburg. 

I wondered what my young friend was thinking.  This was all new to him.

But first things first: Jagger falling asleep in my guest bedroom and me working on Dutch for an hour-and-a-half.

Today we wandered the streets.  We sipped the beer.  We perched ourselves near the top of the Belfort (a medieval tower completed in 1380) listening to the carillon music coming through the ceiling and gazing out at the magnificence of the city.

And then Juicy Lucy burgers at ‘t Koningshuis, only steps from my apartment.

***

(Sigh)

Now even my fingers are tired.  And so …

Goodnight

Tomorrow morning at 7:45, I greet my nephew Jagger at Brussels Airport.  He’ll have three weeks to explore a continent he’s never met.  I hope his head will keep spinning with a barrage of new.

He’s 20.  I’m 75.  And we’ll see wonders that will make both of us smile.  Such as in Barcelona, where for three days the architecture will be a jolt for four eyes.

I remember loving a movie called “If It’s Tuesday, It Must Be Belgium”, where folks on a bus tour of Europe were thrown from one tourist attraction to the next.  No thanks.  Jagger and I will visit the Gravensteen castle in Gent centrum and we’ll amble here and there amid the cobblestones of my home.

I’m proud of Jagger – leaving what he knows for the unknowns of Europe, spending six days by himself in Italy, the rest with some uncle guy.

I hope we get to see KAA Gent play football in Ghelamco Arena on May 25, if that works with his travel plans back from Italy.   I hope my young friend Medhi will invite Jagger to play basketball with him and other guys. 

I want our spirit together to be big. 

I read today about Tadej Pogačar, one of the best male cyclists in the world.  Right now he’s riding in the Giro d’Italia, a three-week bicycle race.  One commentator said “Pogačar, it seems, never operates on battery-saving mode.”

That’s you and me, Jagger!

All in

Going for it

Happy in the world

I was in a Zoom retreat with the Evolutionary Collective this weekend.  There were 56 of us from around the world.

We see ourselves as an example of consciousness evolving on the planet, without flaring egos getting in the way.  We’re committed to connect with each other spiritually.

Our time last night ended with a 45-minute practice.  Years ago we met in person.  Imagine six or eight folks sitting in a circle.  The host guides the participants in the silent exercise.  One person is focused on, everyone looking softly into their eyes.  The recipient looks at the second one for 40 seconds, at the third for the next 40, and so on … Then on to the next focus person.  Each one has a time for being the centre of attention.

The experience is a blessing for me – really seeing the divinity of each human being, their shining particularity.  The host plays a series of soft tunes that amplify the closeness.  Together we create a sacred space.

We’re all so different from each other, and deeply the same – in our yearning for true connection.

Last night we “pinned” each other on Zoom so that in each moment one person filled our screen.  Not like being in the same room but just as wondrous.  There were seven online circles of blessed beings.

When it was over, we said …

Good afternoon (3:00 pm on the North American west coast)

Good evening (6:00 pm on the North American east coast)

Goodnight (Midnight in Central Europe)

Good stuff happens to us.  Bad stuff happens to us.  I can tell the bad stuff to go away but that hasn’t worked out very well.  So what to do?

I woke up this morning scared, and with less sleep than usual.  That’s what’s so.  I don’t feel the need to share the details.

In the last year or so, I’ve enjoyed the distinction between “this” and “that”.  I call what’s happening right now “this”.  What’s not current is “that”.

So this morning I let “this” wash over me.  It included some negative thoughts and experiences.  At one point, I got that I was using my contemplation of “this” as a method to have it float away.  That’s not the spirit of “this”!

And now …

The fear is less.  And it lingers.

The eyes want to close.  I’m pretty tired.

***

These two are visitors

“Would you like a coffee?”

“Stay as long as you like”