Trolleys and Presidents

Here we go! My (short yet very intense) working week is (finally!) over. Now it's time to pack and get ready! In a few hours I'll be traveling south. I haven't been anywhere since August so I think I deserve a nice wee break in the sun.
Break = no work (or maybe just an hour a day, for fun), but most importantly... no internet! I believe the only way to relax nowadays is to disconnect and stop stalking people on Facebook, Whatssapp and Whathaveyou.
This time break = my friend's graduation, so I am really really thrilled and so incredibly proud!
And who knows...maybe I'll even bump into...Mr President.

Every time I am about to go somewhere and I hear the sound of the trolley wheels I get goosebumps. It's a sound full of expectations, excitement, happiness...don't you think?!

Even babies know...

...that there are three "magic" words: please, thank you and sorry. This is what my mum taught me when I was a toddler and I have sticked to it since. 

Scene 1

I am eating pasta a yummy alla carbonara skillfully prepared by a good friend of mine and chatting away happily when I hear a bird tweet. I think: "Oh wow, spring is finally here!" and then realise that the source of tweeting was my silly phone (since I am often training in the woods I thought I should have a ringtone that doesn't clash with nature. The driiiiiiin I had previously freaked me out each time the phone went off). Gmail tells me I got an email. I decide to ignore it. I am with a friend, I say to myself, and he deserves my full attention. F**** technology. Ten minutes later I decide to have a look anyway, in case the message came from a friend who's in hospital at the moment. Subject: URGENT TRANSLATION! Text: Can you translate this quickly? Tell me you can. 

Scene 2

4 posters to translate. What to do? I decide to stick to my plan: aim for quality and efficiency. The client will eventually realise my rates are not too high, not even for them (wishful thinking????). I explain to my friend that I need to do this quickly, that it will take me 30 mins at the most and tell him to make himself comfortable while I get the work done. I rush to my laptop feeling annoyed and guilty. I come up with some brilliant solutions (while my friend is sitting in silence in order not to disturb me). I obviously make sure that a really flowery text sounds good in English (syntax, rhythm and all that*), reply to the client with a polite email to which I attach the translation. Done. Time elapsed from when I received the email to when I handed in the work: 40 minutes. 

Scene 3

Silence. 10 minutes later: silence. 30 minutes later: silence. 1 hour later: silence. One would expect at least a "thank you". It only takes 8 letters. In Italian it requires even less of an effort: Grazie (6 letters). Nope, nothing. 

Now, don't you think not only quality, but also speed and efficiency come at a price? And don't you think that, regardless of my rates, they at least owe me a wee "thank you"? Please correct me if I am wrong. You are free to tell me that I should face the big bad world out there, that a job is a job, that this is how things work, but you will never convince me that saying thank you is such a hard thing to do.

Scene 4

The annoyed translator really enjoys the afternoon walk with the patient friend and decides to have a nice and cheerful evening despite the lack of gratitude (and manners!) that permeates this world. The (a wee bit less) annoyed translator gets home late after watching "12 years as a slave" (I recommend it!) and reminds herself that each of us has a bright side, even the most disrespectful person in the world. 

Having said that, people should really grow up! 

Goodnight. 

:)

*thank you, E., T. and J. for being such great teachers.

Unresolved issues and oranges

In buddhism it is said that if you do not solve a problem in its entirety, it will keep coming back to you in a different form. One does not need to be a buddhist to understand that this is true. We are all meant to improve and progress in our lifetime (or, if you want, in this life :). That's what we are here for. 

Currently, I am still having some problems with my rates and people expecting me to do the work for yesterday. Not surprisingly, these are the same people with whom I had a problematic relationship in the company I worked for. I used to get angry. Very angry and frustrated. Now what I do first is make sure I remember that no matter how annoying, stubborn and demanding someone is, they have their own reasons. No matter how difficult it is to deal with them, they also have their good side. All I am trying to do is shift from my point of view to theirs and see things from a different perspective. Taking a step back allows me to distance myself from the situation, look at it from an outsider's point of view and take the right decision. 

However, something I don't get is how come chocolate oranges keep coming back into my life. 

Again and again. 

Do they have to do with an unresolved issue as well? :)

Life indeed can be sweet. Enjoy the feeling, lovely people!

Walking on sunshine

We have had some really amazing weather here these days. Last weekend I got a (unexpected) visit. A lovely lassie just decided to come over before she sets off for  a new adventure and we were lucky enough to be able to spend most of the time outside, either in town or in the woods. That obviously excludes the time we spent eating (too much pasta, I was told) and talking. One of the things I like most is making my friends meet so I was really happy that L. got to meet some very important people from the Trieste crew. I believe your friends are somehow the mirror of your soul so it is impossible that your friends' friends don't have anything in common with each other. Another nice thing about "old" friends meeting "new" friends is that everyone gets to know something about you they previously ignored (in my case it was funny stories about fire alarms and my reaction speed in emergencies, implying that I am only pretending to be slow most of the time :).

Although it is true that...well...that "we should carry the sun in our hearts" (as banal as it may sound), sunny weather helps to be positive and proactive. Another thing that helps is meeting nice people who are ready to listen, talk and help you. I have always been lucky to have people around me who would always give me a hand, who would always be there for me. And, funnily enough, it is not always the people you expect will help you who actually do. Sometimes it's almost complete strangers or people you have just met. And it doesn't matter because it just shows that energy flows. Positive energy is never waisted and sooner or later it comes back to you. You don't know when and in which form but it does. 

I have been reading up on buddhism quite a bit lately and going to meetings. I find this philosophy extremely interesting. Complicated - and yet simple. It is also interesting to see how the basics of all world beliefs work according to the same principles. As a friend said the other day: "Certain things are just written on our hearts, adding that "Unfortunately we often suffer from heart disease."

I am sure we do, but I am just as sure we can change things. It won't be easy and it won't be quick, but sometimes a very small change has a very big impact. Simply choosing to smile instead of complaining will make a difference. All it takes is a couple of muscles. 

Speaking of muscles, now that spring is actually here I have started training for a 10k run in May. Last year it was the first time I did it and I took my time and enjoy the new experience. This year is for real. I'll do it with friends so I have no excuses. Muscles need to be activated here too. Now.

Chronos and Kairos

Today I had an unexpectedly stressful day. Why? Because I had made plans. I wanted to get things done. I knew what I was going to do. Or at least I thought I knew. I took my time in the morning (i.e. set my alarm for half six and woke up at 9), had my morning coffee (I even frothed milk for a proper cappucheenoh)...and then it arrived.

"Quick check." = 4 hours of work. (Yes, I am slow, yes, I am pernickety, but still...)

= no lunch

= no time to finish my other work

But you know, you always hear the things you need to hear at the right time. 

Today I heard the story of Chronos and Kairos, 2 Greek gods. Chronos represents linear time, passing by minute after minute. Quickly. Unstoppably. Scarily.  

Kairos, on the other hand, represents circular time. The time perceived by children, where 2 minutes = 2 hours. The time you spend doing creative, entertaining, interesting, fulfilling things. Time filled with laughter, friends, family. 

Ideally, each adult should have Chronos sitting on the left shoulder and Kairos on the right. Both are important, but "round time" is the one that's good for your soul.

                                         Wish every one of you loads of round, spiral time.

Balancing it right

How much is too much?

FOOD
Although I would say is never too much, I can assure you that even I am sometimes full to the point that I feel like I am about to explode. 3,2,1...Boom!

WORK
Nice to be busy but no matter how hard a perfectionist tries not to be one...perfectionism is like a plague, a deadly virus. You get to the end of the week with a splitting headache and very little money in your pocket.

EMOTIONS
Why is there always someone you care about more than they do and someone who cares about you more than you do? Isn't that a bit unfair?

BRAIN ACTIVITY
I have been reading, thinking and meditating a lot these days and I often manage to be most profoundly happy...But then my brain starts working like crazy again, I start asking myself a thousand questions. About life, death, friendship and love, the future and the past...

The answer is: LIVE FOR THE MOMENT.


                                                                            HERE.

                                                                            NOW.