There is something so incredibly wonderful about being reunited with an old friend, even if only for a short time, it’s like cleaning out your wardrobe and finding your favourite old well worn jumper that when you put in on brings comfort, warmth and with it a thousand memories.  I found an old favourite this weekend...at the train station in Wuerzburg, she was an hour late and carrying a backpack but she brought with her comfort, warmth and a thousand memories. I hadn’t thought too long or much about Beth coming to Germany, because I found that when I did, it made me miss her more. However the week before she was due to arrive, I felt like a kid at Christmas time, anticipating Christmas morning and therefore unable to sleep! (no...literally) Being that I am perpetually late (although in all fairness, Junior is never later to kindergarten...ever) I ensured that I was atleast 20 minutes early...Oh gosh, those 20 minutes went soooo slow.....then 5 minutes past, next thing I knew it was like 45 minutes after Beth’s train was due to arrive. I started panicking, messaging Ben and Jesse, freaking out at all the possibilities, unable to call and knowing Beth has no immediate way of contacting me...I started pacing, I didn’t think people really did this other than in the movies to emphasis fear when the acting was bad...But it seemed like the only thing I could do. When I finally saw her walking through the crowd my heart leaped and I burst into tears (typical, I know). But I remember thinking, how is it that four months have pasted and yet it feels like no time at all, it still amazes me when you have friends like that, who can go on doing life separate from you, yet just like that old favourite jumper, when you come back together it’s as though no time has passed at all. 

After a teary reunion, Beth and I set off in our little black car towards Amsterdam. AMSTERDAM! For the weekend! We just got in the car with a tank full of petrol, a case of beer and a tent, and we drove. In the same amount of time it would take a Sydney sider to drive to Port Macquarie we drove across Germany and then all the way across Holland! Crazy! Still blows my mind how close everything seems here comparatively to Australia. We arrived safe, set up the tent, admired the scenery and the beautiful Dutch men (ok, I admire them) and enjoyed a beer, on the street – felt like such rebels. The city itself is beautiful and amazing and much more than I had anticipated. Ofcourse there is a feel good vibe, I mean we all know what Amsterdam is famous for, but beyond that, it was such an atheistically pleasing city, everyone was super friendly and there was this sense of nostalgia dispite the fact that it was my first time in Holland. The first day the weather was the epitome of perfection, a blissful 25 degrees, sun shining, a slight breeze coming of the canals and not a cloud in the sky. We hired bikes and rode through the city. A german friend of mine had been working there for a couple of weeks and had some free time so we played a chasing game for a while till we managed to find him. After that we continued to explore this incredible city, taking in all the wonder and beauty of history and craftmanship. Naturally, after such an “arduous” day we went back to our temporary abode and had ourselves a well deserved beer, or 3. And it was here that I was once again reminded of the power a song has in pulling me back, mind, body and soul to a moment in time, whether, good, painful or otherwise. I know that scientifically it’s smell that is most prominent when it comes to being drawn back into a memory, and I have experienced that, like walking pasting a baking and smelling fresh donuts and being reminded of my Pop who would never come to visit us without bringing a treat, or walking by a woman wearing Chanel and being reminded of my nan.

However, for me, it’s a song, or in fact lots of song that bring me back to a moment in time. It’s amazing how much can be conjured with a few notes of a song, often a song you didn’t even pay attention to at the time. Naturally, songs that are played at funerals, weddings, big emotional events, happy or sad will transport you back there, and often even invoke the same feelings you felt in those moments. But it’s the songs that transport me back to moments and memories that at the time I never imagined reliving. Beth and I sat at the table in the setting afternoon sun talking and reminiscing about the good the bad and the painful. We had our Ipod on shuffle, and with so many of the songs, when I let myself I was thrown back into moments with people who found their way into my heart. Some are still in my life, others haven’t been for some time, but yet for the most part with these songs come some of my fondest most beautiful memories, in fact it’s almost more than that, it’s as though I am back there, in that moment with that person for the 4 minutes the music plays. If someone asked me to recall these memories I am not sure that I could, but it’s a wonderful thing to know that we can relive and remember those seemingly irrelevant moments that shape us and add beauty to our lives by hearing a song. Naturally, on the other hand, we can be reminded of the painful things we would rather not relive, although I think maybe it’s important to recognise that while we may not be able to forget the painful moments, we have the choice not to tell that pain have a place in our future. Sometimes perhaps, in the cases of missing those who have left us behind, it’s good to remember, though at times painful, remembering the good things, the wonderful moments, helps us heal and honour their memory. Music sometimes expresses things that words cannot, and I am so incredibly grateful for its power to help me remember, because there are something I never want to forget.