Week 17 of Tara's Gallery, and this week it's a double-header, also appearing on Sleep is For The Weak as part of Josie's Writing Workshop. The prompt is 'Emotions', and bound to throw up some humdingers of both photos and posts, I would imagine.
So what's my chosen emotion for today's piece?
Amazement.
Because sometimes I look at my life and I can't quite believe it's me that's living it. If someone a few years back had said that normal, staid, shy and probably a bit boring me would be living in Moscow, and what's more, had chosen to do so of my own free will? I would have told them straight; not a chance. I'd visited this country over the preceding 15 years, so I thought I had a pretty good idea of what it would be like. It's too cold, I would have said. It's too far away. It's too complicated, it's too Russian, I would have said. It's just too damn hard, I would have said.
But when the chance really came up, what did I actually say?
Yes.
Which is why, when I was sitting in traffic this afternoon and this view came into sight, I felt that I had to record the moment. Not a view a suburban Londoner who was never intending to live in Moscow would expect to see on her way home from the bank, is it?
It certainly fills me with amazement.
Note - look hard (with a magnifying glass) and between the two buildings you can see St Basil's Cathedral. Well, you can if you ignore the dirt on the windscreen of my car, that is... (And no. The car was not moving when I took this, officer. Chance would have been a fine thing...)
You DRIVE in Moscow?
ReplyDeleteRespect sister..
BM xx
BM, the alternative - not driving, and having to wait for taxi drivers who are notoriously unreliable and never have seat belts fitted in teh back seat for the boys - is too awful to contemplate, so that's a pretty good motivator. Plus, I have sat nav...
ReplyDeleteAh, that's what makes living somewhere different so worthwhile! Great vista.
ReplyDeleteI get the same feeling when I glimpse the Empire State building in the far distance on a clear day....
Life is funny like that. My husband sometimes talks of going to live in Japan... Who knows.
ReplyDeleteI get the same feeling when driving through the English moors and dales. It's empowering isn't it.
ReplyDeleteWow-how did you end up in Moscow?
ReplyDeleteLike Susie I want to know more! Fab photo :D Jen
ReplyDeleteNVG, ah, now if it were the Empire State I could glimpse, that would be another story altogether!
ReplyDeleteMwa, Russia is one thing, but Japan? Wow. (I'm so sad - am already thinking; how the hell would I manage to learn THAT alphabet?)
AG, it certainly is. Although a little more peaceful where you are, I would imagine!
Susie, a long story involving a Dutch husband who speaks Russian, the credit crunch, and financial opportunity... (oh, and much soul-searching on this blog before we got here)
Jen, see my comment to Susie above and thanks!
Wow. I think that people who move to other countries are so brave. My family moved from Italy to Canada - but my mum's family lived here already.. I can't even contemplate moving more than a half-hour away from my family.. Despite the husband's occasional ideas..
ReplyDeleteStopped by from Josie's.