Though I love writing about charming villages and discovering what I call “charm-for-days” places, sometimes I just can’t bring myself to write about the most charming village, the delicious food, or the enchanting ambience. Sometimes I just can’t write about such frivolities when there is so much suffering in the world.
Yesterday, I met the sweetest family who have two small children with the disease Progeria—a disease that makes children age rapidly. As I looked at these tiny children with aged faces, who probably won’t live past the age of 13, I was numb with sadness as I continued on with my work for the day. Suddenly, charming villages, vineyards, and cobblestone streets didn’t seem so important.
Though I hope to continue to explore such charming places, I must take a moment to acknowledge the suffering that so many experience and that it’s not all about the charming villages but about showing kindness and compassion and reaching out to help others.
À bientôt!
Cheryl,
I very much appreciated your post today. It is always good to take some time out from our busy lives and focus on those who are less fortunate. There is a lot of suffering in our beautiful world from illness, gun violence, natural disasters, and on and on…..Just stopping to show compassion and help out when possible is the humane thing to do and counting our own blessings every day is wise because we never know when we might be the person who will need kindness and understanding from others.
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Thank you for your beautiful response. The suffering does go on and on with one thing after another, and it is heartbreaking! Kindness and compassion can help soothe many woes.
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I’m sorry but I choose to disagree on this. Writing and reading about pleasant things on a blog is also a way to escape from the ugly realities that we hear about each day. Isn’t it the same for you?
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That’s so true! We sure need an escape from time to time. I love travel for that. But at times my heart feels heavy, thinking of those who are suffering or not fortunate enough to enjoy vacations but who struggle so much with the day to day or are just trying to survive. So I just wanted to acknowledge that. But I will still continue to write about all the charming places I encounter as I love to read about all the good places that you and others find. Thanks for your insight.
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Oh dear, Cheryl, that is a sad story, and probably a good reminder of how fortunate we are to be able to travel.
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What an agonizing thing to witness. I can only imagine the courage it takes for that family to weather such a horrendous situation with love and courage. XO
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