Pre-Nostalgia
Every time I am about to leave something, someone or somewhere behind to move forward, a certain" pre-nostalgia" takes place. It could be a job, a person, a city or, as in the past few months, a hotel.
This is especially true for places I had the opportunity to live fully and have called home for a specific duration of time.
I like to compare this" pre-nostalgia" feeling as the one I used to have when I was a child going to someone's birthday party. In the beginning, always very shy, keeping it very low, only observing, without really living it, maintaining a certain distance from the others - a pattern that would happen both ways, a period of acclimatisation for all parties involved.
As time went by, all kids start mingling a bit more, everyone becomes more comfortable with the presence of each other and start feeling safe in that new environment. A certain comfort zone starts to build up until the moment where the parents arrive and say it is time to" go home". You try to convince them to stay a bit longer since you only recently started to actually have fun, but without success. It is simply time to leave.
You leave the party with a certain sadness, with a feeling of, what if I had stayed just a little bit longer. But soon the feeling dissolves, and you're already entertained and excited about what will come going forward.
The parents, in my case, is my inner desire to keep moving, exploring and experiencing. Once it starts to get too comfortable, a little voice comes up from behind my mind saying how much there still is out there—new worlds of possibilities. The part that wants to stay is the parts that is longing for comfort. It is the mind saying to not step out of the comfort zone (again) and stay "safe" instead. But the curious speaks louder.
After one month living at the stunning Parco San Marco, tomorrow it is time to leave. It has been a time of learnings and experiences, with the opportunity of getting to know the unique souls working here.
A place where nationalities meet, people coming from everywhere, with different kinds of backgrounds and experiences, each with their own stories to tell.
I confess that in the beginning, it was a bit overwhelming, in a place so big (almost like a little city on it's own) to remember all names and keep track of who's who. But with time, integration started happening, and with the majority, I had the chance to spend at least a bit of time while having them in front of the lenses.
I thank each and every one of you for inspiring me, for sharing your stories, for showing me new realities and being such caring humans. I respect each one of you, admire your hard work and am curious to see where life will take you with the hope of maybe encountering you somewhen again.
A month and A LOT of pictures later, it is time to say, not goodbye, but see you soon.
Ci vediamo presto, ragazzi.