The porch
As I sit here on the porch of our 1800s style Southern house, rocking in the white chair, listening to the Mocking birds imitate 4-5 different bird calls, I can’t help but be grateful for where I’ve taken my life.
Mare and I just finished a kilogram of boiled Louisiana Crawfish. They look like small lobsters and are in season right now. It’s a local delicacy which I’ve been keen to try ever since we arrived. Finally we found them being sold at the local supermarket at $US 2.96 a pound. That converts to only $9 Australian per kilo! That’s so cheap! Prawns in Australia are $25-30 a kilo.
Anyway, as I slowly rock back and forth, the only thing that interrupts the gentle sounds of the mocking birds are the church bells which ring a different beautiful tune every 15 minutes. Every time they do, it’s a reminder of how quickly the time if flying past. It’s as if they’re saying, “What have you done with the last 15 minutes? Have you used it wisely?” It really brings me back, away from my thoughts, and into the moment and into appreciation.
Across the road is an enormous tree. Not sure what type but its branches reach out 10-15 meters in every direction from the trunk. They reach right over the road and stop just short of our porch. They’re densely covered with deeply green leaves. A vine covers the dark trunk and large branches. Where the vine doesn’t reach, a thin layer of moss does giving it an enchanted feel. That’s just one of the many trees which line this street. They give the street a cosy, comforting and natural feel.
The three columns of my porch have neatly trimmed Creeping Figs reaching half way up each one, at which point, they are have been cut in a straight horizontal line, allowing the house to blend in with this natural surroundings.
Warm slightly moderately humid air is comforting and reassuring, in contrast to the looming cloud cover.
As the church bells tole to signify that in 15 minutes the hour will be over, I realise that there was no point to writing this other than to embrace and appreciate this beautiful moment. That’s time well spent.
Location: Old Algiers (just across the river from New Orleans), Louisiana, USA
House: Rented on AirBnB.com
Date: 2nd May 2016
