A six word story
I carry it all with me
A six word story.
I think of these stunning sculptures by Bruno Catalano “The metaphor of travel”, which were in Genoa this year. This is not my photo. I wish it was. I wish we had got to visit when we were in the north of Italy in October. But we never made it to Genoa.
Another pending trip!
The seven monumental sculptures all have parts of the torso missing. What does that suggest about the migrant person or the traveller on the move? What do we lack? And what do we carry?
My six word story is this:
“I carry it all with me”
We left our passport country many years ago. At first you miss the place you called home. In time you can grow out of that. You miss people. But then over time some of the people that you miss the most leave this world, and your relationship with ‘there’ changes. There’s less reason to go back. It’s no longer home. I carry some sadness about all of that.
And then there’s the luggage…
There are the highs and lows, the challenges that have given you resilience in spades. You carry more and more curiosity, not just for other countries but for other cultures and other languages. When we move on, it comes with.
I don’t give a monkey’s about having designer suitcases. But over the years we have acquired a collection of ‘Louis Vuitton’ individuals, robust and lifelong friendships. I would not want our life to be without any of the very special friendships made en-route.
When you look at the migrant, every story is unique. The motivation to leave your passport country varies. We cannot know their story unless we stop to listen. We cannot know the load that they’re carrying.
What’s your six word story?
©Maggie M /Mother City Time
Image credit to Musei di Genova