mymidlifegapyear: serious fun ...

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Autumnal energy….

The russet colour of the autumn leaves reminds me that here in Europe, autumn is actually a distinct season. A gust of wind gathers up a handful of the red, brown and yellow leaves and swirls them around my feet. It’s a pleasant unfamiliar noise and I listen to its music for a while. It’s cold, but I am rugged up and armed with a map, and excited to be exploring Nijmegen just before sunrise on my own.

Yesterday I took the Eurostar from London to Brussels and then two trains and a bus to get to this pretty University town south of Amsterdam. My companion is Hila, a stunning Israeli woman who now calls Holland home, who I met in York. Our meeting was serendipitous, bumping into each other while checking out of our hotel.

We had been seated at the same table for the duration of the workshop I attended but we hadn’t talked, and yet over breakfast, I felt like I was with an old familiar friend. An only child of Holocaust survivors and single mum, with an intelligent analytical mind (previously a dentist with a PHD), Hilda is now studying Shiatsu and Chinese medicine and is an EFT practitioner.

I am back in London, when I receive an SMS from Hila inviting me to join her for some “serious fun”. I hesitate only a moment wondering what I could be letting myself in for, but as soon as we meet any caution evaporates and when we catch the Eurostar together, we are so engrossed in our conversation that the two hour journey feels like a blink of an eye. A young Nigerian woman with a child so beautiful that I want to squeeze him, sits across from us and is so taken by our conversation that she feels compelled to tell us how helpful it has been just to listen.

Later at Lodewijk in a very funky eatery near Hila’s home in Nijmegen, we talk for hours and the conversation flows easily over oysters, Prosecco and a seriously delicious fish dish. The following night over another amazing meal where I meet one of her friends, I can’t help feeling like I’ve known this generous, hospitable woman for a lifetime instead of just a few short days. Later we talk and tap into the early hours. I haven’t had such truly “serious” fun in a long time and when she drops me off at the train station to catch my train to Amsterdam, I know I am leaving behind a kindred spirit.