Tags
Australia, Glicks, Hometown, Local area, Melbourne, Mobile phone photos, Neighbourhood, Obama, Second coming, Smileys, Street art
Colourful broad strokes paint a pastiche of lively expressions within a handful of postcodes radiating and pulsing… meshing and manoeuvring… peacefully nestling into each other – this is my local area.
I’ve lived here before, several times in fact. First as a nineteen year old filly, unsure and clueless, escaping from rather extreme brotherly torment, my main concern. Oh, and partying. Second – on return to this hometown of mine, before fleeing the scene of the trauma. I ran full tilt from a place I loved, desecrated and tinged with sadness and panic.
Returning once again and with fresh eyes and mostly healed… this time primarily touring on foot and two wheels. Mode of transport changes my view, how I caress my world visually… seeking tender details with renewed intimacy.
Recent times have brought pain, darkness and confusion where I’d thought those experiences burnt through. Yet… this home of mine – my boomerang world – returns to me as I do to it… welcoming me with signs of love.
Some are hidden, others overt for all to see. Some are subtle, winking and smirking warmly. The message is always the same – glad you’re back… we see, we care, we smile with your wins and we’re here no matter how many times you leave. Welcome home.
This quirky cluster of localities is an important hub of Melbourne’s mixing pot: artists, label queens, students, nouveau rich, street walkers, Orthodox Jews, old money, dog walkers and cyclists, status lovers, Glicks famous bagels, heritage listed buildings, places and trams, tourist strips and alternative businesses shrugging off corporate constraints…
Within the longitude and latitude of my birthplace, where I don’t belong so much… it’s as close to home as it comes.
~Svasti
Svasti: A Journey From Assault To Wholeness 
Great stuff Svasti and I love the ‘smiles per hour’ – there should never be a limit – nice to see some snow here!
J
Wow, Svasti–when I was reading this post, it so reminded me of when I returned to San Francisco. You know, that was the ‘scene of the crime’ during my wild years–those years lost to punk rock and addiction. I left there to return to Montana and then off to graduate school and was gone for almost 10 years. When I returned in 2001, it had changed so dramatically, yet it was still the same San Francisco that I had fallen in love with, way back in my late teens.
This was such a beautifully written post–you took me right into your emotions.
Melinda
@GSTF – hey thanks! I couldn’t believe it when I saw that ‘smiles per hour’ sign either! Just the fact it exists… makes me proud to live in the area again.
@Melinda – there’s a place in Sydney I feel the same way about. Whenever I go back there, I find myself playing the game of ‘what’s changed, what’s still the same’ and taking joy in discovering the answer to both questions.
And having spent some time in San Fran, I understand how easy it would be to love it there too. In fact, I have friends who try to convince me I should move there!! 😉
Gotta admit, I had to read thru this twice to decide whether you were talking about a real or metaphorical place…though that probably says a lot more about my state of mind than yours….Then, some people might say that reality’s a metaphor…and, actually, when you’re talking about a place called “home,” the real and the metaphorical tend to get mixed up to the point that it’s impossible to tell them apart….Jeezus, this is starting to sound like one of my weirder blog posts….
One other thing, tho…what’s with the fuckin’ snow?
@Dr Jay – stop digging up the hidden meanings in my posts would ya? Now… how’s anyone else gonna wonder what I’m really talking about and when… which bits are internal or external… and what I really mean by ‘home’ is the subject of a yet to be written, but much thought about post…
The snow is… irony 😉
Svasti–I think you would love SF. It’s a beautiful city. And I have heard that it is very much like Sydney. I hope to visit Australia sometime because everyone I know who has been there has loved it.
Melinda
@Melinda – I *do* love San Fran, from the time I spent there (fairly brief). And… it has the added bonus of lots of my fellow yogis living there too… its a potential decision I need to make somewhere down the line about where I live!
If ya ever make it to the great brown land downunder, give me a holler. Might even put you up – if I’m still here that is! 😉
svasti, sorry, don’t know why the links don’t work for you on my blog…they always work for me….try again maybe?
shanti!
@linda – weird! I’ll try them again…
I’ve love them!
The “Smiles per Hour Zone” is great!
@Ana – I know! Its a fantastic little sign. 🙂
Agree with writing group… wanted this to be longer 🙂 It’s like, oh no, I just got into this beautiful, rich voice and then… *poof*
“Within the longitude and latitude of my birthplace”… i cannot quite describe how this makes me feel but I definitely see how you would’ve been more emotional reading it aloud to folks.
@CK – Yeah, yeah okay… I’m gonna get working on it soon. Honestly, I’m so distracted right now its hard to finish anything. But I have some ideas on how I could expand this already…
heehee good. ’tis usually helpful to let them percolate for a bit anyway.