Motivation

In the beginning there was chaos. Nothing was as it seemed and nothing made sense. There were too many options and no guidance. There was complete autonomy, but no ideas about how to make it work.

Then ideas began to form themselves and solutions were searched for. All of a sudden there was a tiny ray of light and decisions were made. Someone came to assist and things seemed positive.

Then there were books. Books and articles. Interviews and internet sites. Millions and millions of never-ending pages. Information was abundant, maybe too abundant. Problems started occurring. Selection processes. Time management. Pressure, yes, lots of pressure.

Suddenly the spring sun arrived. Not having anything to do with chaos, books nor time pressure, but still it had an effect on everything. There were smiles. Someone pressed the fast forward button and things started happening.

Finally I was on my way.

Of trash and treasures

Carlos had everything he needed. Food, clothes, shoes, his own bedroom, loving parents, quarrelling siblings and even an amazing XBox. He knew there were boys his age that didn't have all that he had, but normally he didn't dwell on it. For ages he had dreamed about a brand new pair of Nike Shox Turbo OH shoes, because he had worn out his old ones.

One day he couldn't find his old shoes anymore. Carlos asked his mom where they were and she told him that she had given them away to a boy that was walking barefoot on the street. She had bought her son a new pair of shoes, of a brand that was totally unfamiliar to him. After a moment of sulking, he decided to put on the new shoes (that were not Nike Shox Turbo OH shoes, not even anywhere close). After all, Carlos had to go to soccer practice.

On his way to the field, he saw some shoes that he recognized. They were worn out, had a hole on the left toe and were tied with red laces. These were the shoes his mother had given away. In them was a boy Carlos' age dressed in rags, but with the biggest smile possibly imaginable.

Good morning, sunshine

In the middle of deep sleep, Tito jumped high. Something had scared him. Claws! "What's going on?" Willow asked him still with sleep in her eyes. She soon understood what it was. A large black and white long-haired forest cat was looking at her from its view-point on top of Tito. It was the beautiful male that lived in the house they were visiting. Petting the lovely soft-furred fellow, she didn't mind that it was just 6 o'clock in the morning. Tito wasn't as pleased as her and turned around to sleep for another couple of hours. The cat was purring contently. So was Willow.

Travelling

The landscape was changing as they moved on; cities, suburbs, forests, mountains, lakes, cottages, more lakes, more mountains, forests, suburbs and finally cities again. Landscape can be interesting enough to make the hours fly by. Good company is even better. As the lovers traveled together, she drew him a genealogical tree so that he could learn the names of her family members that he was about to meet. Her family was not big, so it was quickly done.

Then she wanted him to draw his genealogical tree, both his mother's side and his father's. Just as her family was very small, his family was compensatory large. Completing his family tree, he drew both of their names into it. She felt honored to be included and also very touched. Some day they would make the family tree grow even stronger.

Diplomacy

There was seemingly nothing that could be done. They had tried everything from tempting to tricking to forcing to begging, but they didn't get anywhere with her. The situation was locked, because the girl simply refused to eat the soup that her parents had put in front of her. She would not even touch the silver spoon that lay beside her bowl. The girl had decided not to eat. Only babies eat their food with a spoon.

At last her father came up with a bright idea that might be worth trying. He laid a fork beside her bowl of soup gone cold and waited for a reaction. The girl thought about it for a little while, before grapping the fork and eating her soup with it.

4-year old girls can be tough negotiators.

A member of the family or The calling

Whenever the old man went outside in the beautiful, flowery garden that his wife had spent years cultivating, the dog would follow him like any faithful companion. He would spend hours looking at his master reading political essays and other fine pieces of literature, never going tired. His master was a good one that played with him, petted him and sometimes gave him delicious bones to gnaw at. Sometimes when the old man got tired and needed a siesta, the dog would start whimpering and barking at the second his master closed his eyes. The rest of the family members explained this odd behaviour as a fear of losing his master to death.

Through the years, the faithful dog also got older. He continued looking after his master until one day he knew it was his time to leave. He was no longer able to take his food, nor his water, and although his master and the other family members did all they could to save him, it could not be done. The dog had been called and there was no way he could ignore his calling.

As the dog drew his last breath of air, it was as if he in one moment could feel all the love he had ever given and been given throughout his life. His master had loved him for 12 years; the dog had loved his master for 84.

As they parted, tears were covering the old man's smile.

Coexistence

The alarm clock went off at exactly 8 o'clock. Willow turned it off half-conscious and turned around to sleep a little longer. Tito was trying to communicate with her through a veil of sleep that was still uniting her with the dreaming world. When his words failed to reach in to her, he started to massage her while repeating his words. Slowly Willow gained consciousness parting with sleep and understood what he was saying. "Happy Women's Day, Willow! I love you!" Tito's irresistible dark eyes could probably make any woman feel beautiful. His promise to make a romantic candlelight dinner for two to celebrate the wonders of womanhood sounded lovely. Tito knows how to make Willow feel special.

Happy Women's Day to all you fantastic, strong and beautiful fellow sisters out there.

March

When we woke up this morning, we turned the calendar and saw the new photo of a smiling Che. Having breakfast together, Tito told me about a tradition that he's grown up with. A tradition that it would be very nice to continue with in our little family.

Every New Year's Eve, 12 candles are lit for a few minutes. Each candle has a sticker with the name of a month. When they are blown out just after midnight, a wish goes with every single one. One wish per candle, one wish per month.

Every first day of a new month, a new candle of the New Year's Eve candles will be lit and let to be burned down. Then the wish will come true.