When we were young there was no expression such as “BFF” (Best Friends Forever) and it’s difficult to tell, when a friendship begins, how long it will last, but after almost fifty years of friendship, I believe we can say we are Best Friends Forever. When we were young Only yesterday when you organised the usual family reunion that happens whenever we come over for holidays, I was telling someone we were classmates for only two years, back in …
Images
My darling boys I’m writing to say that I miss you. On these first holidays without you, when we won’t be together for a single week, not even for a few days, I have to confess that I miss you. A lot. This doesn’t mean I’m not happy that you are travelling to the places of your dreams. On the contrary. I am thrilled that you have are grown, that you have become adults, that you can …
He looks out of the window of the train that takes him across Europe and feels the bittersweet taste that invariably invades him when he thinks of her. At first, he tries to shake it off – no melancholy thoughts allowed on this much dreamt of trip. He looks at his friend sitting beside him and notices he’s fallen asleep. He turns to the window and, leaning on his chair, closes his eyes. Memories of her instantly overtake him. …
It’s a family reunion at Nuno’s home. I’m deep in conversation with one of his cousins, who was recently separated –we are sharing experiences– when the doorbell rings. The door opens and I see Auntie Cris and Uncle José coming in. It’s so good to see them. Now in their early eighties, when I met them ten years ago they were still in great shape; he, a tall, slim, straight dark haired man, and she a petite, pale skinned blonde …
The empty nest syndrome is mostly described as the feeling of emptiness that invades parents when their grown children leave home, to live by themselves or to marry or work abroad. First time Having been a divorced mother for more than ten years, I remember having a similar feeling the first time they left to spend a whole weekend with their father after we separated. So far, I had only been apart from them during my business trips, and …
Malta international airport, almost 7.30 am. My plane is boarding and as I join the line of passengers, I see a young couple embracing only a few metres away. As I approach I think they are both also boarding the plane, lovers who have come to enjoy a few days of holidays on this lovely island; then, as their ardent embraces continue, I sense the feeling of desperation that comes with goodbyes and understand they are enjoying their last minutes …
For years it was occasionally mentioned in conversations but suddenly the word “Chernobyl” began ringing in everyone’s ears because of the HBO series. Friends kept insisting “It’s incredible, shocking, terrifying… you simply have to watch it!”. We all remembered the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in Ukraine back in April 1986. In Portugal we saw it as a terrible tragedy in distant, impenetrable USSR (Soviet Union), so far away it would never reach us. Little did we know then how it …
I love a good love story and Nieves Herrero, a Spanish journalist and writer, has certainly given me a few good ones, but her latest book “Esos días azules” (“Those blue days”, in English) has touched my heart in a very special way. A meeting of souls As her other novels, it is based on a true love story, that of the famous Spanish poet Antonio Machado and his muse, whom he called Guiomar. Long after his death (in …
“Didn’t I” is the title of a recent song by Rod Stewart; a poignant song, one might even say a father’s lament about how his daughter didn’t listen to his loving advice and ended up “fighting for her life”. It tells a sad story every parent relates to, no matter what. Even if our children are well and happy today, there was always a time when we feared they would not make it for some reason, namely during their rebellious …
In his last record, released in 1980, John Lennon included a song whose title I find most inspiring: “Starting over“. The song is about how a long-time couple should start over in their relationship and do things they used to do in their early days, as if they were falling in love again with each other. He sings that “life flies so quickly” and also that “it’s time to spread our wings and fly”. It’s a beautiful song …
