home

my conversation with vladimir (encouraging me to be an activist and to organize - even those his own political activism got him tortured), my conversations with cem (reminding me of the place i come from, of how this shapes my ideas), coupled with a conversation from a housemate, a self-proclaimed conservative of argentina (claiming that the impossible is possible) have reminded me that there is room in my heart and head for a little more hope.

it's so easy to get lost in new york city, in activism. sometimes i need to be reminded of all the good. it's not just dictatorships squashing social movements and capitalism fucking everything up and boring, uninspiring meetings. there is a lot of good, too.

and then ianna wrote this and it means the world to me,

"i find that you are a powerful force in my life, every time i see you that trap explodes. i actually organized my trip to europe around that knowledge. i'm going to see justyna first in poland and then you in greece so that once i get to wales and i am alone i will still be able to carry the energy that you give me after we part so i will have the courage and strength to go off on my own"

hearing (or reading) something like that really does make my heart melt. the love i have been receiving from friends back home means a lot to me (thank you.) between the love i have been receiving here and the reminders of the support i have back home, i have been feeling incredible.

right now i am in the process of planning my trip to greece and turkey. included in this journey might possibly be germany (for a four day layover) and/or lebanon (to visit hanan and family). i should be buying my tickets this week.

and right now i am still here in buenos aires. i have been walking around, going to queer tango, going to lesbian clubs and anarchist-oriented markets. learning and loving this city. new experiences, new people, new lessons. my landlord is cooking me a goodbye vegetarian lunch tomorrow, and my friend carmen is cooking me dinner. friday i leave for puerto igazu, to stay with annie, who is living in the rainforest next to large waterfalls, studying evolution and monkeys. a week after i return back here.

buenos aires has become home. i woke up this morning, half asleep and half drunk, because i knew it was early and i saw light starting to creep in. i stepped out onto my beloved balcony and watched the sun rise up my street between the old buildings. leaving this city will be hard.