Day 142
Location 28: Budva, Montenegro
Mar. 22, 2023
As I dribbled a basketball on my way to shoot around at a local court, I passed a little kid dribbling a basketball of his own. The moment was brief, but special. For a split-second, I felt like a little kid without a care in the world on his way to have some fun shooting hoops. It was as if we were two versions of the same person meeting at different ages.
This wholesomeness all seemed to be lost on the two gentlemen in the background watching as a random stranger (me) snuck a photo of a child. Fair enough.
Once at the court, I shot around with the owner of my hostel. He challenged me to a game of 1-on-1, which I won. Unfortunately we hadn't made any bets, as I could've played my way into a free night or two.
Later, I joined some friends for a sunset hike to an abandoned medieval fortress. We shared stories, danced to music, and lit a bonfire to ward off the cool air of early spring.
My previous week in Albania was one of the best of the entire trip. Yet here I am making new friends before I’ve even had the chance to mourn leaving my last group of friends. I feel like a widow who remarries too soon after her husband’s death.
And even while enjoying the laughs with my new friends, I can’t help but think ahead to the inevitable day when I'll have to sadly say goobye to them too (because I'll be traveling to a new city, not because they’re dying. I feel like my phrasing made it sound like they were dying.) Any attempt to hide my fear of the impending goodbyes just makes it more obvious. Like using airspray to hide the fact that you just pooped at a party.
But goodbyes are the bookends to hellos. And while the latter is more painful than the latter, it's worth it to enjoy what comes in between the two. Plus, without making new friends, I wouldn't have anyone to play a very normal game of billiards with.
