PIEF PAF POEF

A Walk in PAF

St.Erme-en-Outre, March 2019

Dear,
You came along, as my passenger, on this stroll in the garden of this old convent in the north of France.

For me it started off as a romantic idea of bringing someone, a passer-by, a possible stranger, at least someone I was not really acquainted with, along with me on a stroll. A kind of  journey with no other purpose than to just roam and ramble alone together on the territory or surface of this secluded garden. To pad in silence, without any need of conversation.

To foot one by one, with each their own set of thoughts. As a way to share this feeling of treading, so close-by, without any need to travel far. I invited you to follow me, to step into my itinerary. It might seem ignorant to long for your company, not the feeling of being accompanied, but more to be physically near, (though not too near).

I am aware that I ask a lot, in these days a precious gift, this matter of ‘time’. Forgive me for being ignorant of your own desires and longings. Since you decided to follow me and let me in and take you by the hand, I do feel honoured to have been able to occupy your life for a certain timespan. Perhaps, just because the beauty of the world has many edges and corners, dead ends and walls all along the along.

(Two of these edges are laughter and anguish, said Virginia W.) And everyone has a dark corner or two somewhere. It is not that I wanted to drag you into these, it was more like if we encounter such corners, we might just pass by and wink at them. And in the end, what did happen? Where did it end? There were moments that we seemed to have lost each other. At least, I felt lost at various moments during our walk. You know it only took 20 minutes, this walk of ours. I just added some pictures I took the day after. I thought it would picture the territory we trotted upon. For me it does trigger a memory lane. Hope it will give you a certain lane too. (I also add a rather vague drawing of the route we took)

Yours sincerely, M.G.O.

I halt to add an extra instruction. {I just lost faith for a moment, was not sure what they understood, if they understood the whole, what was the whole, do I understand, do I understand, or do I just do what was expected, what am I expecting, am I expecting, 10 people is a crowd shall I stop here as if it is a planned very short walk, to tease all expectations or, or just go on?}

[OMG]  

(...they seem confused now, too late to change this or to restart or just to move on) ...they seem to be lost, liberated and confused at the same time. I can see them I can see them thinking: Is she still guiding us? Or can we just stroll around on our own. The only task I have is to move on, to move on, going on, trusting that the flock will follow in the end. One important aspect: it is a secluded garden, walls around, like the very meaning of paradise*(*from Proto-Iranian – parādaiĵah = "walled enclosure”) no way they will get lost, at least not  physically, they’ll only fall behind on me. Once they have lost me I still can decide that I might as well get rid of them. Lose, them. Lose, loosen them. 

I arrive back at my starting point, alone and by myself I leave the crowd behind, I hide away in shades in the silent shades of all verticals in pleasant shades in moving shades in following shades in hiding shades in secret shapes in shallow greys eyed walls to follow the surfaces till the end not only with your eyes, also follow till the end with your feet they take your eyes along much further and further lose, loosen them eyes, them feet, them all

I arrive back alone. And little by little the flock catches up, one by one, two, three, four, five, six, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten

As Gretel told Hansel: “We shall soon find our way...”