If only these sheets could talk…

I know, the usual expression is “if only these walls could talk” and I certainly never gave much thought to other items, which might be interesting until a couple of days ago.

I went to Martigny in the Valais to attend the yearly antique and flea market on Friday.

I managed to walk away without purchasing anything, until that very last trip around when I “cracked” for several old postcards of a place very dear to me: Les Marécottes. Never mind how much they cost, they will end up in a scrapbook of memories of that particular place – one that I discovered when I was 5 months pregnant with my first child and one to which I returned regularly until I stopped renting there a couple of summers ago. Life changes.

But that isn’t this story, other than to locate where I was this past weekend. Having decided that my own company was to be enjoyed (doesn’t happen often) I did not call any of my local friends, picked a hotel, went up to Sion to check out my favorite sights and stores there then returned to Martigny and the Forum hotel for the night. Had a lovely meal, slept well and was raring to go the next day.

All my haunts: breakfast at the Migros; buying a small Valais bread – so good when fresh; checking the Hiob – another second-hand store; looking for sofas; looking for slippers. All my favorites stores were duly visited. It was mid-morning by then and I wasn’t in the mood for the spa (not tired enough to lay about in warm water and doze in the sun) so simply continued to visit all the other stores that I regularly frequented on my trips to and from the mountains. All without purchasing a thing.

I also went to one of my favorite second-hand shops in Yvorne, but things have been changed around and half the things that interested me before are no longer stocked. Still it was here that I had a very interesting (bordering on weird) experience. Browsing upstairs in the table clothes, linens and the like area my eye was attracted to a comforter cover – red and orange plaid – just like one I had finally given away several years ago! Now that could have been coincidence as it was purchased in Switzerland and the chances that another like it could have also been put in one of the clothing bins or given to the Salvation Army are decently high, however, the one next to it was also an old one of mine – one that I had never seen anywhere else having been purchased in Germany.

If only they could tell me how they got from Geneva and my house to a second-hand store in another state: who used them? How many individuals gave them back? How did they finally come to be here? Oh the stories those two comforter covers could perhaps tell!

From the past

Coincidences and other cosmic thoughts

That is if I can ground myself long enough to actually write a blog – something I seem to have entirely ignored for 3 weeks now: hmmm, the waxing and waning of the moon has nothing on me.

But today all of a sudden, thoughts seem to be piling back into my brain, first of all this one on the coincidence of dates.

47 years ago my then husband-to-be and now deceased-husband (this may get complicated) had open-heart surgery for the first time. Just days before man landed on the moon, he wrote his mother a letter saying that if things “didn’t work out” that he had had a wonderful life. Imagine, he was only 34 years old at that point and went on to marry and have two sons gaining another 31 years in the process – and another open-heart surgery at age 45.

Little did he dream that on the same day, a woman who would become first a renter then a very good friend turned 25. Today she celebrates another great year after having overcome cancer twice, living first in the flat then becoming my housemate before marrying at 72 and going on to a new life. We have now known each other for 23 years and enjoyed many an adventure together! Happy Birthday D-L.

Nor was he to know that another of our best friends would have their oldest daughter on that same day. She is now a young married woman and I have the pleasure of seeing her daughter grow – I call myself “aunt” which of course takes me back to the politeness of another generation. Happy birthday A!

So today I had lunch with our oldest son, who is now that same age as was his father when we met.

Ah the fun of coincidences.

Cosmic thoughts? It just sounded good, but here's the last sliver of a moon as well as the last full moon to justify the title. 

Corsier, July 2016

Corsier, July 2016

Life’s little coincidences or…

The great thing about staying in one place.

I happened to see an ad looking for people willing to take part in a study concerning osteoporosis. Never having time to call during the two or three periods when they are there, I sent an e-mail to the responsible person.

She transmitted my request to another colleague who sent me an e-mail giving her direct line and the instructions to call (I had mentioned that as I travel a lot it might be a bit of a challenge to fix a date). I did so this morning.

As I read the signature, the name rang a (vague) bell, but I couldn’t really say why.  During our short conversation I mentioned where I lived and that the hour she wanted to give me was difficult for traffic reasons, not because I slept in. When she learned of my address she had another option at a hospital closer to me (at least closer in terms of traffic as cross-country by the back roads) and mentioned that she too lived in my village.

I said where? She replied – I said, interesting one of my younger son’s best friends lived on that street and gave her the name to which she replied that they had been their next-door neighbors. The penny finally dropped – “you’re C’s mother I said” (I’m S’s”: she is the mother of one of my younger son’s primary school classmates!

It’s a small world when you stay long enough in one spot.