ALWAYS come and say hello if you see me around, Dear Ones!
:)LG
Photos of Elizabeth Gilbert
It was an early morning of the second of July, 2014. Lambert airport was crowded. "What would the forth of July be like in NYC, the city I'm visiting for the first time?" I asked myself in the queue.
At the security check, the lady who examined my bag, said she will accompany me to walk through that long line again because "a water bottle was found in my hand bag". And if I needed to drink that water, I would have to check my passport again before heading to the Gate.
I thought I had the grumpiest morning. I slept for two hours only that night. I had packed for the New York one-week vacation the last minute. "Waaaaiit! Do I see what I think I see?"
My eyelids hugged the nerve and muscle clusters around my two eyes for better focus. With clarity now, I could see L.G – not because I read her daily doses of Facebook posts; and certainly not because I ate, read, and slept well that night!
The instant I realized it was actually her was one of those moments when you meet someone as beautifully precious and influential as Elizabeth Gilbert on your way to New York. You think of what to say and how to act in a split of a second because you do Not want to be her "just another fan" among the many thousands world-wide.
I still approached the queue she was standing in so cautiously now yet with eyes wide open, filled with possibilities of explosive joy. I peaked closely at her facial features to erase any doubt and detect if it were a possibly "look-alike" or that was really L.G, my Elizabeth Gilbert!
And there I was: Acting exactly like just another fan. I was looking at her like it was the discovery of my life. Lizzy smiled and giggled a laugh or two. That was when I knew she was so used to such incidents in public places. And the fact she suddenly finds herself being stared at like the rare gem she is, was warmly welcomed by her radiant smiling eyes.
I found myself telling her how much I love her work, how much I admire her, and how popular she is in Lebanon. She told me she had visited Lebanon, particularly mentioning the Bekaa Valley. I totally forgot that I wanted to tell her about my poetry flair and website (www.iPoetry.info). I forgot to tell her that the way she writes means so much to me because her words cross all the way directly to reach the heart. But they never cease to get the mind's affirmations because those contextualized lines you see in an Elizabeth Gilbert book, post, article, or interview are purposefully alive to help you lead a better life in your day-to-day interactions, reflections, and surprises that life presents:
more certainly so when your eyes stretch out in outreach to the happy beats of your heart! As if in one moment, you could see all those lines and stories and favorable descriptions, interpretations, and story events culminating in one instant: like the time you meet your favorite contemporary author; only on your first trip to New York (See picture for more details).
It was a very Happy 2nd, and 3rd, and 4th indeed!
