Our Vow - Never Take it for Granted

The two of us have often discussed how easy it is to take one's life and allow things that were once new and exciting when you first experienced them, to become routine and mundane. You can overlook the beauty and wonder in redundant experiences so easily over time. I think we first had the conversation when we were living on S/V Cool Change, and we would wake up to the sound of seagulls and water sloshing on the hull of the boat. Saltwater was our backyard. We felt so lucky to wake up each morning to sights, smells and sounds that fed our saltwater souls knowing there were people that lived in landlocked areas who had never seen an ocean. We vowed to never take our good fortune for granted. Of course there were dreary days and work days, and cold days just like anywhere else, but sometimes you just have to look for the beauty and non-routine in the routine. I know a lot of people understand what I am referring to from the things and pictures they post on Facebook. It might be a short sentence about it being a glorious day, or a photo of a bird in a tree, or an extra beautiful sunset...even though the sun sets every evening.
When we first came to Merida, we had a very similar conversation. We didn't want to lose that sense of the extraordinary that bombards you when everything around you is new and different - the smells, the sounds, the language, the food, the architecture....and the list goes on. We never want to become de-sensitized.
Sunday, we took our walk following the bici-ruta through town. It starts (or ends) right out our front door and goes through the middle of Centro and out Paseo. It has become part of our Sunday routine. We pass by the same buildings, same vendors, same storefronts, and see a lot of the same faces along with their same dogs. But, it has never become so routine that we don't see something new. We always come home with some bit of knowledge or a sight we had never seen before.
On Sunday, we spent quite a bit of time looking up. We looked at balconies and second floors we had not noticed before on Calle 64-A houses, we saw a second story outdoor cafe we never knew existed before, and I saw the beautiful statues on the exterior of the Casa de Montejo that I am almost embarassed to say I had never noticed before. How many times have we walked Calle 63 and wandered around Parque Principal? It just reaffirmed that it never has to become routine or mundane.

How Can Anybody Miss the Beauty?

The vendors in the Centro area always acknowledge us, and occasionally approach us with their wares. If they don't try to sell me something, I almost get my feelings hurt because I wonder if I have lost that "in awe" look I know I had on my face when seeing all things beautiful in Centro for the first time. I don't want to lose that look, nor that feeling.
It happened again when we were on our way back home south of the park. A couple from across the street was trying to get our attention. They asked us if we spoke English. They were not familiar with Merida, and had questions about the bus system (not that we are experts by any means), but maybe we had that "walk with a purpose look" about us.
All were subtle reminders of our vow to never take it for granted, and always see the "new" and "exciting" in our day to day.