This morning, Chris and I walked Daisy to her Maxigruppe, noticing the bright daffodils with newly wide-open petals. We dropped her off and then walked hand-in-hand to the institute, commenting on that hotel under renovation and this garden's flowers. Into work he went, and I had time and the blossoming city and my feet.
I cut through the park by the pond - still no new baby ducklings, but they're coming! - and said hello to the woman walking her dog, whom I always see on Wednesday mornings. She has a kind, wrinkled face and a long coat. Just a few more blocks to the grocery store and then to the bakery. I crossed the street and hiked back home up four flights of stairs.
Out again, to pick up Daisy from class. We walked to a different park - there's actually five good ones within walking distance of our home - and played until Chris joined us for a picnic lunch. Afterwards, he took the hill up to work, and I wheeled Daisy down the hill to the library.
Everything in downtown Muelheim is accessible by foot: our pediatrician, the outdoor market, pharmacies, bookstores, H&M, an old castle, forests, horse stables, and river walks...
Well, wait a minute. It's true that today was a very good day, full of sunlight and birdsongs and blooms. But it may be that I'm neglecting juicy stories that may add color to my rosy portrayal of the carless experience: stories about grocery bags that snap broken while Daisy decides that she's too tired to walk and lies down on the sidewalk; stories involving inverted umbrellas and soaked jeans; stories of getting our buggy stuck on a snow-covered sidewalk or slipping away down icy paths; stories of taking four separate shopping trips to collect enough food for a party. I should add that every permanent resident I know here does own a car and uses it fairly regularly. If I were to stay here long-term, I admit that I would also invest in a car...but as a luxury item, not a necessity.
From time to time, a parent of now-grown children will bestow a benediction on me and Chris as we attempt to channel Daisy's energies out in public: "Enjoy this. It won't always be this way."
Can't she remember the interrupted nights of sleep and the insane amount of crumbs under the table, the reading of books to the point of memorization and the struggle to combat whining? I'm not sure, actually, that she does...or that it would even matter if she were reminded. What she's saying is that Truth is good and beautiful, and that in the present moment, there's always Truth to be found.
One of the most useful habits I've developed is to look at my life as if from the Myself of the Future, when everything has changed. From that vantage point, living without a car is all about stopping to smell the roses, and nothing about inclement weather or wanting to roll my flailing child down the sidewalk towards home. Carpe diem, eat drink and be merry, enjoy your baby, take a walk, and keep on the sunny side of life. Selective memory is common wisdom.
Hi Holly - I love not needing a car here in Zurich; but I've often said if we had school-aged children we'd probably have to have one. As it is, for us and Lucky - we get along just fine. It helps that the system is outstanding in Zurich and the weather is not too bad. As long as I remember my umbrella and shopping bags, I'm good.
ReplyDeleteOf course, Lucky doesn't lay down on the sidewalk and refuse to keep going :-) Actually, he can stay at home in the kitchen by himself. That is certainly a huge change from when my children were still small!