Paris...
Where to begin...
To write about Paris I felt I needed a fancy font. But that may be hard to read.
Everyone asks – “What was your favorite thing?”
It sounds like it should be an easy question. But there was not just one thing. If you know me I have to over think everything. All of it was beautiful - the architecture, the food, the wine, the art, the people. Yes, the people! We did not encounter any rude French people. In fact, we found the opposite. They seemed kind and gracious - even when we butchered their beautiful language.
All of Paris is exquisite, and 5 days is not enough time to take it all in. But it was a great start. My favorite thing in Paris was the feeling you have when you are there.
You’re surrounded by beauty. It all looks and sounds like a scene in a painting or movie. Every corner smells like the fresh croissants and baked goods. There is music playing every where you wonder. People stop on the streets to kiss, to embrace, to share a quiet moment. And not in a “get a room” kind of way, but in a purely romantic, heartfelt way.
I noticed way less people on their cell phones. In any store or restaurant you enter, they look you right in the eye and say “Bonjour,” and welcome you in. I loved in restaurants or cafes, once you ordered, they let you be. They give you a big bottle of water and if you need anything or are ready for your bill, you let them know. They are always keeping an eye out for you, but they just are not rushing you. Someone described it to us that the restaurants view it as the client is “renting the space.”
I also noticed that EVERYONE gets dessert. My friends...I. Have. Found. My. HOME.
The meals are enjoyed slowly. Everything is meant to be savored. In Paris, all of your senses are engaged, just like God created us to be.
I think that is why it is so magical. It's how we are supposed to live. It's how we were created to be - to delight in life, with the ones we love around us.
We forget that in our everyday lives; where everything seems so ritualistic and we start to feel like Steve Martin from the original Parenthood when he says “My whole life is 'have to'."
I don't know about you, but I don't want to live like that. I feel like God has been working on this one with me. It's funny how all of a sudden, I start to see a similar theme in the books I am reading, in the messages I hear at church, even in my moms' group, I kept hearing the word "delight" and stories of how so many of us lose that, especially during the years we are moms of littles.
I felt like before we left for Paris, my heart was being prepped. Being there solidified that I really do need more of this in my life. More of being present, more of embracing my messy crazy life, to slow down, to go slow and enjoy what is before me. To celebrate big, and let the guilt go. To find and do the things I truly enjoy and with the ones I hold so dear. To be intentional of being present in my every day life.
Of course Paris is good for you and your marriage, you can’t help but fall more in love on the cobble stone streets of Paris. We laughed more, talked more. We left with new dreams, bigger dreams. Paris was balm for our souls. Men take your wives to Paris!
We were all meant to create, to engage life with our 5 senses, to truly live. I believe we can all have a little of Paris right where we are at....I am at least sure going to try.
