A permeating experience.

Coming home after almost 3 months in Sardinia has its benefits. Allows me to sit back and put it all in perspective. And to savor it all. To take time to reflect. On how nicely it went. And I’m still fortifying my impressions. Seeing and feeling Sardinia for the first time. I had this constant sense of seeing something new and fresh. Different for me. The beaches. The mountains. The weather. The countryside. The cities. The villages. The people. And seeing my true love. In the town where she grew up and lived almost all of her life. I also went out and about. To Phoenician ruins. Into coal mines. Into a grotto. And caverns. Meeting new acquaintances and friends. And doing all this at a nice, leisurely pace. And not least, driving a 1986 Fiat. I’m still absorbing it all. And being home helps. Because I have time to reflect. To appreciate it all. Being home gives me a chance to look at the experience from afar. A little like backing up. Elevating one’s self. To see the forest. Without the trees getting in the way. I like the way I’ve been getting to know my true love. And to know Sardinia. And Italy. To see it all close up. In the flesh. And then to be able to back off. And see it from a distance. It’s a wonderful way to put it all into perspective. This is the way one should look at life. Close up. And at times, from afar. It’s as if I’m creating pictures in my mind. Of little details. And the big panoramic picture, too. I talk about it. I write about it. And oh, do I ever think about it. So much. So much. So much. The experience has permeated my being. My mind. My heart. My soul. --Jim Broede