I've been... to Annapolis, the City of Sails

It's been awhile.

I finally visited Annapolis again on the weekend of Sat, Nov 21 - 22. (Last visit: International Ball in April.) Saturday, I met up with Sam, Dan, Cheng Han, and 3 of Sam's roommates: Raley, Aaron and Crane. The 5-hour (!!) hotpot/steamboat was a satisfying meal for the soul; it was good meeting up with all of them again.

What I remembered most of the stay at Peggy's and Kirk's: welcoming and homely warmth. I was surprised both Peggy and Kirk immediately remembered me and my name, though I'd only visited them twice in the past. We had a good meal, and long discussions. Learnt a lot about marriage and love from this couple, still happily in love after over 2 decades of blissful marriage:

1. The first love isn't always the best, or the last. It takes loving and failing to know better how to love.
2. Not expressing love is more than just shyness; it's taking the other for granted, it's a form of cowardice (fear of rejection) as well.
3. The love of your life might be found in the most unexpected places, at the most unexpected time, in the most unexpected person.

Before I left, Kirk slipped a switchblade into my pocket, as a keepsake and to guard against danger. I keep it as a memento of American hospitality, and a reminder of how marriage can be wonderful always, if you constantly put in effort, just like how blades can be kept sharp and smooth forever, if you constantly oil and sharpen it, and not let it gather the rust of neglect.

When I was out running on Sunday morning in the beautiful Annapolis seaside, I came up with this poem:

------
I've Been

I've been to the tree-lined woods
and heard the crunch of fall
leaves beneath my feet.
I've been to the grassy plains
and seen the wispy, aloof faces
of clouds pass me by.
And I've been to the rocky shores;
and in the surf and backwash of the waves,
in the howling of the salt-tinged wind,
in gulls' cries and the wild geese's calls,
I hear
the echoes of my own voice
lost.
------

Why do I record all these things? Scared of losing memories? But what remains of faded memories is the essence, be it the warmth of friendship or the coldness of solitude.

And what is life but a thread of connected memories and broken narratives in our mind.