Ettelbruck

Ettelbruck station, the train stops and I get out and call my parents to tell them where I am, their place, back when everything was still fine. I shouldn’t have called, they told me not to run away, but to talk. But I don’t want to discuss with them, I already know what’s going on, I just want some peace.

I simply long to be in nature; that connection with earth is what keeps me going, what makes me feel alive and free, at least for a while.

A beautiful young woman dressed in dark brown and black stands in front of me at the coffee bar in the station, she shakes her hair and gives me her most beautiful look. Tight, a little arrogant, but just enough that those lips can immediately break into a sweet smile. She pays her cup and disappears.

A few bees buzz around my head, raindrops fall on my cracked leather jacket, and the heat and rain mingle on the road. I walk into the city, looking for the nearest hiking trail.

It’s a pretty town and blends in nicely with the surrounding woods. I find a loop that’s about 7 kilometers long and set off at a brisk pace. In the middle of the forest, I let myself fall into the arms of the grasses. A rippling stream nearby provides the backing vocals for the singing wind. Peace and quiet, for a moment. As a fast food neo-romantic, it doesn’t last long. After the walk, I take the train back and end the day in an Irish bar in Brussels, with fish and chips and a Guinness to wash it all down.

It felt good. The traveling itself is the best part, the desire to get somewhere, to be on the move and not stand still. The destination quickly turns out to be an illusion, because it is so short-lived. The restless soul in me moves on and longs for more, or less, but I didn’t knew that at the time.