Friday 22 August 2008

"There is no fool like an old fool"...

... it is said and today i felt that I had proved the truth of this. One of the many wonderful things about living here in Budapest is that within the city boundaries there are the many square kilometres of forested Buda hills. I took me well over a year to discover them- and i would often sit and lament the lack of fresh air, silence and solitude. And even now, i find that i am reluctant to take the effort to go there, as i live on the other side of the river, in Pest. It is not as if it would cost me anything - my monthly season ticket will get me there - but it means one tram two metro lines and a bus. A whole hour each way that i could otherwise spend playing solitaire!!

Thank Goddess that i have stopped listening to the voice of lethargy and started to explore. For 90 minutes i walked today without meeting another human being. And this was on a beautiful summer's day in a city of 0ver 2 million people. I walked and the only sounds I could here were flies and the occasional bird and also the rhythm of ny breath as i reconnected with my body as it sweated with the exertion.

And i realised how much I have been missing contact with the earth - the smells, sights and sounds of the world that I inhabit but know so little of. For example, i did not know the identity of the snake that was on my path. But I did not worry, for to me it was a sign that I was getting on the right path - getting back in contact both with the the land and with my body. At that moment I felt totally at one with all around me. Which did not prevent me, I might add, from ensuring that I presented absolutely no threat. And it moved slowly into the forest. And I continued my walk. And at times, I skipped - singing nonsense syllables as I did. I was in the middle of a 21st century capital city and also in the middle of a forest, with no human sound to be heard. And I felt at one - and knew Goddess was there with me - that She had never left me- for She is in me as I am in Her and there is no true separation

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

There's nothing more deadening than not getting onto the land once in awhile. Budapest sounds wonderful - all that land for exploring inside the confines of the city.

If it will cease to rain for thirty seconds together here in Wales today, I'll be taking my son up to the woods for an extended ramble. Like you, I feel parched of greenness and the smell of things growing.

Idris said...

thanks for your comment, TGW. I have only missed walking one day in the last eight and on that day - yesterday - I felt that I had taken a huge step backwards, I was up there again today, however, and realised the step was not so huge!