David Guetta. He's a cool DJ who's become more mainstream than Coca Cola during a Filipino family's Sunday lunch.
David Guetta has a song called "Just One Last Time". It's funny how songs sometimes stay in our minds because we associate such with certain memories that are similar either because of how the song's timbre or cadence matches the pace of a particular day, or a particular emotion you associate with seeing a particular person or place. I have no idea how long "One Last Time" had been on the charts in Europe, the US, or The Philippines, nor do I know what David Guetta does for fun when he's not mixing like a maestro. All in all, I don't know much about pretty boy DJ's. I do know a wee bit more about slack rockers in torn blue jeans. That seems to be closer to my chosen cup of tea than a can of Brylcream and a band of posers.
For some odd reason, "Just One Last Time" is a song I associate with me leaving Italy. Yes, it happened to be on my iPhone's playlist during the long journey home, I did happen to do a lot of daydreaming during a trip home which lasted a total of roughly 38 hours- lengthy layovers included.
I knew that my three weeks in Europe represented my soul being at one with something truly magical. Despite the presence of Twitter, Facebook, and email, who knew if I would ever see the people I had met during the trip ever again, and who knew if our time spent together would simply be immortalized in pictures, select conversations, and collective marveling at St. Peter's basilica, Pompeii, and the picturesque views from Ana Capri and Sorrento. I knew that before I had gone to Italy, I had a life which I was well acquainted with, not necessarily satisfied with, and not necessarily disappointing, either, Before I had gone on this long journey to this magical place, I knew I was set to bear witness to beauty. I was not fully aware of the extent that the journey would eternally change me.
It's been 9 long months since that trip. 9 long months since beers with Sarah and Carl, conversations with 2 mums Trish and Mary, light moments with Sharon, Natalie, Chak, Steven, Jan, Josephine, Joo Seet Tan, Jowell Tan, and Lili Ong, misadventures with Rita and Kellie, jokes with George, Sam and Ed, and many other tidbits of thought which will always make me wonder whether we are all put in particular situations be a Higher power in order to enrich and be enriched. Who knew, that in the last two months I would get to see Josephine in Singapore, and Natalie, Jan, Steven, Sharon, and Chak again in Malaysia? Who knew that the problems of this one boy, could be so freely and honestly discussed by this lad, over a few pints and with a group of then strangers? It was sensory overload. The trip in its entirety took me in its arms and threatened not to give me back.
I had to go back to the reality of my day to day life at some point. But not without having been so utterly moved.
Maybe "Just One Last Time" had gotten lodged in my noggin for so long because it almost felt as if I would never feel the thrill of a trip to a place like Italy ever again, or, at least not for a very long time. I was sad about this thought for a while after I had gotten home. It didn't help that I was thrown into the fire soon after I had gotten my Filipino bearings back. New set up at work. New apartment. New setting. New people. Potential for girlfriend leaving the country. It was all quite overwhelming. I even was all emotional during a conversation with a superior at work about all this at a particular juncture. I was that affected by the maelstrom of change that came raging at me at a blinding speed. I never expected my return home to be as tumultuous as it was. Have I even mentioned the fact that a loved one had been diagnosed with a mild form of cancer and had gotten admitted in hospital sometime after my return home too? So, you see, things had gotten pretty confounding by the time my 30th birthday rolled around in June.
And then, past all the rough waters and spiteful looks and noise, there lay silence.
Just like that, all had become calm again.
I had received the impetus to find myself again during the last quarter of the past year. I took the plunge. 3 countries, 2 months, a wellspring of memories that can never be replaced. And so, I move on, on to the next great thing life has to offer me.
Knowing how life can surprise, I don't think the "last time" has come just yet. Maybe not. Perhaps I could experience the magic similar to that which I found during my Eurotrip yet again. Heck, maybe I will get 2 days to explore the Uffizi Gallery this time. And maybe, I will actually buy myself some more souvenirs this time. The Euro is expensive for even a hardworking Filipino, but still. It's not like it was a decision tantamount to buying a Porsche. More souvenirs to sop up memories. That's a good thing.
Folks, always hike up your sensory perception during a trip, and most of all, don't forget to open your heart to "feeling", "experiencing", and ultimately, "changing" for the greater good. Strip away everything, and memories are, seemingly, all we really have. Strip away memories, what you may get are traces of emotion that spell out being in full unity with the very core of "being", and the sweetest fundamentals behind being human. Shed a few tears, offer up a few smiles, walk a few miles in these shoes. Don't be afraid to "dive in". Never regret having "hopped in".
I know I never have.
(So evidently, David Guetta is both wrong and right.)
***Yearn for one more go at a beauteous experience, and savor what you have been through as if you are about to breathe your last. It's that sort of investment in experience that makes reds and yellows shine just a bit brighter.***
MC
***This is dedicated to all the people I have met during my travels. Thank you for adding such vibrance to the tapestry that is this old clown's life. Cheers!***
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