I've been away. I've been dreaming. Or rather, I haven't been dreaming.
The Archduchess came with me into the desert, at the Observatory in the Mountains, and she never left. I came back to the real world, but she preferred to remain in a place with no people, in a place where she can see all of the stars in the sky and the land all around.
We meet, occasionally: she was with me when I admired the endless fields of spring wildflowers, reveling in the blues and reds and yellows that paint the land, she was with me on calm Sundays at sea when I breathed the salt air and held tiny writing creatures in my hand, she was with me on mountain summer nights when I watched a thousand joyous fireworks light the valley below. But, every time, I go back to normal life and she doesn't. Being away from the living world is too painful for her.
So we made a deal: I live my life in the world of humans, working and thinking and talking and, when it's too hard, she shows me the wonders she's lived and seen and pondered. Then, every once in a while, we meet again and for a few glorious hours live in a beautiful world.
Who am I when I'm not with the Archduchess? I'm Sarah. Plain Sarah, who learns to live in a world that's not quite perfect, with all the Good Things and Bad Things that happen, who learns to like who she is, who finds her passions in life. From biology, I discovered marine biology. From marine biology, I discovered invertebrates. I discovered coral reefs. I discovered I could go anywhere in the world.
So that's exactly what I'm doing: Starting today, I am spending seven months in New Zealand on an exchange program with the University of Otago.
The story of my travels is moving to Year of Two Summers
The Archduchess came with me into the desert, at the Observatory in the Mountains, and she never left. I came back to the real world, but she preferred to remain in a place with no people, in a place where she can see all of the stars in the sky and the land all around.
We meet, occasionally: she was with me when I admired the endless fields of spring wildflowers, reveling in the blues and reds and yellows that paint the land, she was with me on calm Sundays at sea when I breathed the salt air and held tiny writing creatures in my hand, she was with me on mountain summer nights when I watched a thousand joyous fireworks light the valley below. But, every time, I go back to normal life and she doesn't. Being away from the living world is too painful for her.
So we made a deal: I live my life in the world of humans, working and thinking and talking and, when it's too hard, she shows me the wonders she's lived and seen and pondered. Then, every once in a while, we meet again and for a few glorious hours live in a beautiful world.
Who am I when I'm not with the Archduchess? I'm Sarah. Plain Sarah, who learns to live in a world that's not quite perfect, with all the Good Things and Bad Things that happen, who learns to like who she is, who finds her passions in life. From biology, I discovered marine biology. From marine biology, I discovered invertebrates. I discovered coral reefs. I discovered I could go anywhere in the world.
So that's exactly what I'm doing: Starting today, I am spending seven months in New Zealand on an exchange program with the University of Otago.
The story of my travels is moving to Year of Two Summers
You came this far with me, you read through and gave me encouragements, you helped me, you showed me the world in each your own ways. I cannot be thankful enough. Thank you, thank you so very much. I wouldn't have made it through were it not for the beauty of the world and the people in it.
2 comments:
I've been away and just came back to see you have returned. I am so so pleased that I didn't take your Blog off mine. I am even more pleased to know that you are ok. Now to follow you to your new blog.
That seems a very sad post, Sarah. I hope you and the Archduchess manage to meet up plenty of times in the future so that Sarah can fade into the background more... Very best of luck in NZ.
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