Wishful Thinking {a guest post by My Castle In Spain}

I always say that I became a grownup at the age of 8. It was when my family left the sunny Provence for the grey skies of Paris. I cried bitterly the day of our removal because I sensed I was waving good bye to my childhood and that there was no return. It meant no more Sunday walks on the hills where I played with my sisters and no more strolls around the colorful markets in Aix-en-Provence, my birth town. Even though Paris was a bright new thing, flowers, scents and people were not the same. Years after, it seems to me that I have always been chasing the vivid memories of my childhood, this special touch of frail innocence mixed with slow pace and tranquil happiness. After many years of a Parisian life, I had the incredible luck to move to southern Spain, in Andalucía which I am now proud to call home. On the very first night, when the subtle scent of jasmine entered my room, I knew I was home because it was the scent of my childhood. Andalucía brings it all back to me: the way Mediterranean people joke or do things slowly, the intensity of the light, the long summers, a sense of humble happiness, the smell of pine and wild thyme in the countryside, the olive trees.....

I cannot explain rationally the deep love I feel for this part of Spain. Or rather, I would say, little by little like birds do, I made myself a nest with time and patience. It has not always been easy but my intuition did not fail me. And it also proved to me that we have to love our dreams always.  

Well, there is no doubt as soon as my Sean reads this post, he will ask me to pack our bags and procure a one-way ticket to Spain! Lala of the beautiful life subject behind My Castle in Spain truly knows how to live every moment to the fullest.  She is a creative soul in more ways than one, and recently, she added designer-worthy aprons to her shop.  I'm hoping one day to visit her in the beloved city she calls home and soak up as much of the jasmine air as one possibly can before becoming intoxicated by its sweet goodness {or perhaps that's a good thing!} ~ 

[image by Lala Ema]