“I reread the Odyssey… which I had first read in school and remembered as a story of a homecoming. But it is not a story of a homecoming. How could the Greeks who knew that one never enters the same river twice, believe in homecoming? Odysseus does not return home to stay, but to set off again.” Bernhard Schlink, The Reader

Last week we just ate clementines. Well, we did other things too but it felt as if it was all that we did. When you have the flu, you want to eat citrus fruits all the time, don’t you? It is really lovely to see that no food is dismissed when its eating is preceded by having an opportunity to peel it, and garlic is no exception (at least not in my toddler’s case).

As our noses were running and temperatures went high, we had to say no to a few events and cancel one too. I must admit I have grown so fond of our little communities recently that I have found it quite painful to stay at home.

There are times however that we find it difficult to appreciate our back and forth travelling. Journeys to work, shops, schools and nurseries. But as much as we love home, as much as we find it easier to return than to set off, there is no doubt that we also meet ourselves in other places. These days even if my journeys are only to the nearest park, I am grateful for having them. For having opportunities to set off. To be in motion. In a physical or metaphorical sense.

They say that small children learn an awful lot while discussing with their mothers all the things that happen on the other side of the window. Quickly, they are drawn outside… they find their favourite places… just as adults do.

Today I am grateful for those places and our destinations that pull us out of bed every morning and make us meet ourselves and meet each other. We belong to the world that’s greater than our home. We must set off.

 Thankful Tuesday series was started by Life With The Crew. Pop over to her blog to read about her adventures.