Asheville-Cool
“Of
all aspects of transition, reentry shock is perhaps the most, well,
shocking. Reentry is the situation that occurs when you return home
after a significant cultural experience.”
Geneva
College Web-page
Going
home will bring sweet silence and a period of restful reentry. I'm
looking forward to it as much as I was looking forward to coming
here. I have had fun with all these women-folk—talking about
absolutely everything, eating at a dozen different nooks and
crannies, and walking in the yellow wood of my beloved North
Carolina. We range in age from 20 to 70, and religiously, from
Jewish, to Southern Baptist, to Christian mystic, to Wicca. Our views
on everything are colored by all of it.
I
finally went out alone today for only the second time, and thanked
the gods for the opportunity to observe first hand the change of the
season. I walked off the beaten path, and found a spot in the forest
that had a floor of moss and brilliant red maple leaves. I sat for a
while and thought about my daddy and all the things he taught me
about life in this part of the world. He knew trees by the bark and
every plant in the woods that could be eaten or used to flavor food.
He knew which plants were endangered and which trees were good wood
for turning into useful objects, or for winter fires.
In
this short week, the leaves have gone from beginning to turn to peak
color, and have been breathtakingly beautiful all along the way.
Driving down the mountain to Asheville has been like gliding through
a fantasy-land of changing hues, with the bright fall sun and
Carolina-blue sky framing everything. I wanted ten more eyes to take
it all in—two are simply not enough.
I
have observed a few things that won't surprise you. Being old and
highly educated does not necessarily make you emotionally mature or
wise. Some people are most comfortable serving others, while some
people believe that being served is their birthright. Old people can
have tantrums when they don't get their way, and young people can
stand their ground when they have to. For some, enough is never
enough, and for others, anything is too much. And through it all,
I've learned that true friends put up with almost anything and keep
on loving, even when their patience is sorely tried. I don't know why,
but I know it's true.
I've
learned that I'm not cool enough for Asheville in the same way that
I'm not cool enough for Aspen, or Paris. I prefer the simple
life--down to earth, a little frayed at the hem, and rough around the
edges. It suits me. Home, with all its imperfections, will be a welcome
sight.
In
the spirit,
Jane
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