Dust echoes

The first story I chose was the Mermaid story. It is about an elderly song man who leaves his family/tribe for a walkabout excursion. After a while of walking he comes to a waterfall, where he is being pulled down into the water by three mermaids. Somehow he manages to survive under the water surface and lives happily with the mermaids. Or at least up until the day he can't stand the homesickness anymore. He misses his family too much, so even though he's not uncomfortable with the life that the mermaids is living he decides to go home. To yet again gain a peace in his soul and mind.

I think that the story tells us that wherever you are, right now, you will always have roots. You will always have a family you belong to (though it may not be your biological one... though they might not be physically alive). Let's put it like this: You will always have memories of your past - good and bad ones!!

I really feel that I can refer to this story a lot. Especially right now when I'm in Australia without my family, without my roots, without my childhood environment, without all my relatives, without my lovely friends (having one with he though! The best!! Lucky me!). The first month that passed really just flowed through - there were so many new things to do, see, arrange and handle - so there was really like no time left to think about where I were or what I've decided to do.

But now, as I'm starting to get some routines, I feel that I've started to realize. But I think it's a natural step though - once you get routines with school, exercises, more friends, weekends, weekdays.. Yeah, you know the drill - when you're developing your own everyday life here - you get time to think things through. Just like the man in the story! It takes a while.... But then you realize what you had and you miss it!

But (!) I would not do as the man in the story though - go back home. But, after all, I do not have a family, I do not have a crying child longing for me, I'm not a tribe leader or anything like that.. So, I totally understand why he had to get back. Why the homesickness became too much for him. He really, really had a place where he belonged but he gave it up, and then he decides to come back again. Happy ending!

Hopefully they lived happily ever after...