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Published: October 29th 2013
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Hello again all,
I am sorry for the long hiatus between posts recently. To be honest, I did not write because the honey-moon period of magical adventures had ended for me. I was learning who my real friends were and what I would have to do to continue on with those who I could keep close. I was learning that it is not always sunny or always rainy in Wales, there is no perfect weather just as there is no perfect place. For so long I believed that I had found heaven on earth, and although I still believe that I have found something very close to it, I have dealt recently with many of the same issues that I deal with in the USA. Human nature is a universal state and it is very flawed but it is also beautiful. There are so many tears and echoes of laughter flowing through the corridors of The University of Wales Trinity Saint David and the bright green hills of Lampeter, Wales. For such a little place it has seen so much. It has seen American girls cry on Walker Hall's steps because they felt lonely, it has seen marriages of couples
deeply in love, it has been torn apart by plague and bomb threats and it has accepted Tommies home from the Great War. The place is riddled with ancient hills, stone circles and chapels. So much hope can be found in the remainders of places of warship and war memorials. So much joy can be found at Cymanne pub on Folk night as a circle of people who have just met dance along to music that they have never seen the steps for. I have received a broken heart here in Wales and Wales has repaired it. What I have always feared in life: rejection, failure, the feeling that comes from knowing that you are leaving soon....all of these fears still remain in Wales as much as the magic of the UK at first diminished them. Boys still break your heart and some girls are still mean, some days you don't understand your school work and sometimes you are picked on simply because you are not from a certain location. Yet in the end, I have found friends and choices here that have done so much for me. I am no longer afraid to have fun, to plan and to
let myself feel truly free. When I feel bored or restless I can walk through miles of farm land on hiking trails that lead me to places that have created peace for people for hundreds of years. Although the beast of uncertainty has finally pounced upon me, I see that it has beauty. The honey-moon period ending does not mean that I want to go home, it simply means that I have reached the point where Lampeter is my home. I am no longer a tourist in the UK really... I may still have places to see and pictures to take, but I have settled in. The bed that I lay upon at night no longer feels like "not my bed" and the words that I hear no longer sound "different." I have adjusted to my surroundings and have embraced them. I have just over a month and a half to continue the love that I have found here in these hills and ancient walls. On Sunday I leave with my soul-sister Rae for the Emerald Isle. I will write to you again when I return from Ireland 😊
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Finding yourself
It sounds like you've found Wales to be a lovely place and you have embraced it but you are also learning life is what you make it. The behaviors of others can be called into question no matter where you are. Some people are worth embracing and others worth walking away from. You decide how you react to their positive and or negative comments and behaviors. Sounds like you've found the perfect hills, farm lands and hiking trails you can sort all of that out. Life is short and meant to be shared so surround yourself with happy people who share your positive and kind attitude. As you say you are no longer a tourist in the UK. Enjoy Ireland.