wings

in recent months, my mom and i have started meeting for lunch. she lives close to my work, so i take an extended lunch and we have a visit. these are quickly becoming some of my favourite times with her and i'm very thankful for these one-on-one visits. today we had a good chat about becoming parents, and i asked her specifically about what changes she experienced. she wasn't exactly sure at first since she felt they were probably more apparent to others than herself. the more we chatted the more things came to her mind. she said that you almost instantly mature, almost over night. and that life takes on new meaning as your priorities change. she said there's also things like hormones that come into play. she was really encouraging though; she thinks i'll do just fine and that i have a good man to help me :)

oh! it's kind of old news now, but it's confirmed that i'm going to berlin. i leave next saturday - february 2 - and return the following friday - february 8. i'll take the train to montreal, then fly (business class!!) to zurich, then fly to berlin. i'll arrive sunday morning around 9 am, then have the rest of the day for sleeping and exploring. there's two main things i'd like to do while in berlin 1) the hop-on, hop-off bus, and 2) visit the berlin wall. i've always been fascinated by the berlin wall. maybe because its fall was a big event that took place just as i was becoming aware of the world beyond my own life. but it's also significant to me because i have peers, one coworker in particular, from berlin, and it's mindboggling to me that someone my own age grew up with that as her reality. so i think i'd be remiss if i didn't take a short S-Bahn ride to the remains (that are now called 'east side gallery'). i'm also excited to have turkish food there. michel tells me that berlin is the best place to get turkish food. i'll give it a try there, then compare it to the turkish food i'll eat when in turkey in march.

have you ever seen the documentary 'the cove'? i got it from the library. it was about the dolphin slaughter in japan. it's super sad, and i'm glad they made that documentary to expose it. but there was part of me that felt like i wished as much passion and risk went into saving children from human trafficking and modern slavery. i suppose the irony about the dolphin trade is that someday, all these fisherman who are killing dolphins, will probably die or go crazy from mercury poisoning.

i think it's that i feel more confused
by the deal love has shown me.