IKARIA 'Moments'
Living in Ikaria makes one feel childlike again. Remember how everyday was a bit of an adventure? When you went exploring, your heart beat and you were always on your toes able to go with this or that situation. Ikaria keeps one like this. In my opinion, this may come from many of the island traditional beliefs. One is there is no rush here. Dinners can last for hours, name day parties and weddings can last for days. After 7,000 years and living, in many cases like your great parents did and still perhaps living in your grandparents houses, time seems irrelevant. The philosophy of 'den priazi' (it doesn't matter, it's okay, no worries) is present here.
When we first got here we learned that the locals just walk into the house, that people come for tea and stay 9 hours (it happened), or the appointed 'carpenter/plumber/computer person' etc. doesn't come at the agreed upon time, but life gets filled up instantly with the 'surprise' day. Perhaps this is running into someone that needs help getting the chickens out of the newly planted flower garden, or a knock at the door and the next thing you know you've been taken to harvest
where wild onions are growing. The winter moments are so rich, even if it's a cold rainy day, or a 'Wuthering Heights' fogged in day, as soon as you are out in it, it's a cornucopia of surprise.
On these days one moment leads to another and at the end of the day, one is smiling at the turn of events of all the Ikaria moments that were totally unexpected.
