Finally, the nice weather has come to Oldenburg!!! For the past three or four days the weather has been either in the high 60’s or low 70’s, and we have been drenched with sunshine every day. There are few things that feel as good as the first time you are outside with a t-shirt and soak up the sun.
Dodo and I have been taking full advantage of it. After a little spring cleaning, we were able to enjoy the beautiful balcony connected to her room. We grilled there yesterday, and the day before we played chess in the waning hours of the day. It was great!
I am so grateful to have the Husmanns around! They are always good company. They also have a beautiful house where I can “flex my muscles” a little bit. By that, I mean I can do some yard work! I really miss that.
We heard from Kiki in Australia today! Her and her “zweites ego” had a long overdue chat. It was really nice to hear them talk again.
On a completely different note, I realized something cool the other day. I listened to La Boheme for the BILLIONTH time the other day, but this time was different. At first I wasn’t sure why it had such a large affect on me, but then it hit me like a ton of bricks: I had listened so many times before, but never with someone as meaningful as Dodo in my life. It made me realize that despite my musical training, so many people have been able to experience the piece better than I, because they were in love.
I can remember the time when my parents went to their first opera, which just so happened to be La Boheme. When Rodolfo reached down and grabbed the frozen little hand, I caught my father, out to the corner of my eye, reach over and grab his Mimi’s hand. That’s something I won’t forget, and it stands as testament to how different a piece can be to someone in different stages of his/her life. In a real sense, my parents have always understood that piece much better than I ever did.
ANYWAY, I should get back to enjoying the sun! There is more to come. I have, again, been neglecting this blog. I will try not to do that in the future, but first I want to get outside and make some memories to write about.
Yours,
Mike
