Repeat, Then Forget

“First poppies. All the next ones will be just a repeat.” As I read this line on Manja’s blog, my mind started going in all kinds of directions at once.

She was describing the spring’s first red poppies in her neighborhood of lovely Tuscany.

I commented, “Food for thought” to which Manja replied, “Yes, it’s like with peaches. Or strawberries. At least it used to be – now they are available all year round but the taste is lost…”

Isn’t that true for most of life’s experiences? The first time we see, taste or experience something is always the best, most memorable time.

Isn’t that one of the joys of childhood? Discovering everything the world has to offer, being thrilled with the small things in life – the same mundane things that later on in life seem boring to us since we’ve gotten so used to them.

Even the great things in life can get overdone and lose their glamour after too much of an abundance. (With the exception of chocolate, of course!) Getting what we want has never been easier than in today’s world.

And isn’t that at the root of why many people travel? To find something new, something exotic, yet unexperienced, to capture that magic of discovery and unfamiliarity again.

“All the next ones will be just a repeat.” So true. Still, we seem to have forgotten about all those summer flowers by the next winter and are able to find joy again the next spring at the sight of the very first flower buds. Like a reunion with a long-lost friend, seeing those first spring flowers all over again feels so special.

I suppose it’s a good thing we’re able to forget, in order to rediscover. Sometimes all we need is to be made to wait, and our inner child will come out.

Thanks, Manja, for the inspiration!