Thoughts about saying good-bye

Saying good-bye is not what everybody has a chance to experience, but it is something you never learn how to deal with. It hurts every time, even if it's not forever. And if that wasn't enough, those moments of parting settle in your memory and later become one of the reasons for out-of-nowhere sadness. Especially now, when people freely travel all over the world every day, good-byes are becoming a very common thing. Even children experience that with, for example, their summer camp friends. Also, one mustn't forget about the rivers of tears that are being shed on graduations, in airports, bus and train stations, and, finally, hospitals and cemeteries. In addition to this, couples fall into long distance relationships, children leave their parents, people go on business trips, and soldiers go on missions, knowing they might not come back. But then, there is always some brighter shades regarding some of those points (not the cemeteries, of course). Take, for example, the fact that people make friends all the time. Then, in some cases, it becomes a closed circle: you find friends and leave them, then you do it again and again. But still, I do not believe you can ever put up with the feeling. Oh, and some more news from the bright side: just think how many love songs and letters have been written for the ones who were left alone, especially in the case of LDRs (Long Distance Relationships). From my still lasting experience I can say that this is one of the most morally painful things one can experience. Especially the beginning of it, which is always the worst. As time flies, it gets a little calmer inside, but the pain and sadness never disappear (of course, if the feeling of love remains). Nowadays, it has become an entire new culture: hundreds and hundreds of videos on Youtube, all those previously mentioned songs and cute letters, little gifts, big packages, motivational pictures on the internet... It is surprising how everything has changed to the extent of LDRs when the meeting of a couple in love is actually the first time the two people see each other! So, in conclusion, good-byes are painful, but what comes out of it in some cases is just amazing and couldn't possibly result from anything else.

And that's how my summer began

Summer.. In our heads, it's all about long nights at the fireplace, swimming in the sea or lake, comforting sound of crickets every night, and lots and lots of sun. For me, it's the same. But today..it's just different. The first day of summer '13 feels completely different than usual. So here I am, sitting in my room, enjoying relaxing music, eager to make art. Contrary from what we all expect, there is no sun. The rain drops are knocking at my window, creating that incredible feeling of harmony and peace. It's pouring outside. Just an hour ago, I heard shy, lazy murmurs of thunder. It's the first time I got to hear them this year. It's the first time the first day of summer looks too cloudy to see the sun, smells like rain and speaks to me in quiet peals of thunder. Weird, you say, but, surprisingly, more enjoyable than ever.

Creativity takes over

So this is a story which I wrote at about 5a.m. tonight for one of my courses.

Elijah, a five year-old, was sitting at the kitchen table, staring at the endless hills outside, which contained all possible shades of green, roughly interrupted by some red, white or pink bits of blossoming wild flowers. He was alone in the house. Alone, but not lonely. He was used to this feeling, waiting for his dad to come home from the corn fields. It’s been like this for a long while, that actually lasted more than he could remember. However, when he was way too little to be left alone, his aunt Cora would stay with him throughout the day, talking to him, sometimes calming him down so that he would stop crying. He was such a cry-child! He took her as a family member. But as he grew old enough to stay alone in the house for the whole day and do some cleaning, she became a guest, a visitor. She would come once a week, every Thursday. More and more often, talking to her felt completely different, strange, even awkward.

He saw Caleb walking across the tall grass towards the house, a chocolate-brown figure, surrounded by the greenness of the sun-lighted hills. He finished the day’s job and until the next day he was free. Elijah watched him, relaxed, getting closer and closer to the house, waving to him. The little boy waved back. He felt sympathetic to Celeb, although the old man did not seem to mind the obligatory work in the fields. Elijah might have to go and work there one day, too. Just like his grandfather did, just as his dad does. But he might as well not. Caleb told him that things were getting better, everything was changing. However, seeing his dad so lively and happy every time he was coming back from the fields, he felt like this kind of work was all he needed for a good life. It seemed to Elijah that it was enough to feel useful, enough to be treated fairly, to eventually gain respect from the whites, which, Caleb used to tell him, was an important goal to achieve. The door opened and he heard a cheerful and lively voice, calling his name. Impatient and excited, he waited for Caleb to take of his shoes, then jumped off the chair and ran to greet him.

  What, from your point of view, was the main idea of this story?