no. 221 guest post by gaia

hello from germany!
i have a gaia here, ready to make her entrance into the wonderful world of blogging, she THINKS it's a one time deal...
heh-we'll see!

"dear world"
hang out with teenagers.
if you are feeling despair over the state of the world...hang out with teenagers.
if you can round up a few grandchildren-
do it.
If they propose to bring along a couple of friends, agree immediately.
The thing is, teenagers dont's know what a couple is, in their world it can be anything from five to fifteen.
Say o.K. to them all and then relax and watch and be reassured by the end of the day that there is hope for the world.
yes, they are members of another species, probably from another planet, but one that, given time and encouragement and acceptance, will save the world.

Today I went to a swimming spa near Heidelberg with my grandchildren and a 'couple ' of friends, I lost count at about ten. Anyway, it was terrific.
I won't go into gory details about ending up in the Herren changing room instead of the Damen one, or learning that we hadn't paid for a sauna and therefore needed to put our gear in a locker that was absolutely identical to the one we had erroneously already stowed it.

What is interesting to me is how they KNEW we weren't sauna approved, very strange.

It was a gorgeous day, we could sunbathe outside in between swimming in the outside pool. The kids,predominantly boys, played with a soft water ball. they were noisy and harmless. it interested me that they were checked for behavior several times, while they weren't doing anything different from others, only they were noisier.

NOT AT ALL FAIR.

If adults were pushed around in this way they'd be furious. This was illuminating. All in all, however, this was a wonderful day, with the wonderful company of kids. I give my thanks to them all for a day I'll treasure and they don't even know the gift they were giving, of sweet vitality, and zest for life.
Oh yes, and innocence, kids disguised by nature as young adults,but still kids, bloody marvellous.

...kisses and wishes
...hope and virtue
...umarmen und lieben
e and gaia