Venezia

I walk past the pianist who passsionately pressed her chords into melody. The violinist, bassist and accordionist joined in one by one, together trumpeting a joyful symphony that hinted of optimism, brisk action, and unbridled youth in its prime. I then pass white-gloved waiters on my way to the busy Piazza San Marco square where people fed hundreds of unwieldy birds. I joined in the chaos for a while. In the middle of the square I still heard the music, which was about to reach its conclusion so I slowly turned myself around full circle, in sync with the distant symphony that lifted my soul with its buoyant chords, as if to suggest that yes, there are a lot of things in store for the future. Then the end; applause; legions of birds fly.

I visited Venice the day after I arrived in Florence. The train from Florence dropped me and my aunt off at one end of Venice. To get to the Piazza San Marco, we had to pay for a water taxi or walk for 30 minutes. Of course we opted for the scenic route. We walked through narrow alleys and countless canals, all filled with confusing directions to the Pza. San Marco. As I passed through numerous stores that sold masks, Murano glass and other souvenirs, I started looking for my own souvenir. I wanted a magnet made up of murano glass that had “Venice” etched on it. The first few stores my aunt and I went to said it was an impossible find. Then by the tenth store, the shopkeepers said they’ve seen them before but somewhere closer to the P. San Marco. So we kept walking. As we neared the square, we’ve probably visited 20-30 stores to no avail. I was about to give up and lower my standards to find more suitable magnets when I realized that it’s the same thing with women. I decided that I won’t lower my standards just to find a woman that could suit me. I didn’t give up on that magnet. After I made that decision to God and to myself, the very next store I visited had a whole selection of these magnets! I lent a sigh of relief, at least my standards weren’t crazy. But after that store, I never found another store that sold anything remotely like what I was looking for. My aunt and I even went to the Murano island itself to look for them! So I realized my own lesson – never lower your standard when it comes to important life matters. Because chances are, those standards were pronounced to you by God, and He has something special in store for you. You know, like your perfect magnet.

We eventually got to the P. San Marco, and it was just bustling with life. Musicians serenaded us and birds were just everywhere! They’re probably the most fed birds in Italy. They’re aggressive too. After that, my aunt and I sailed for Murano island where we watched glass blowing demos. We took lots of pictures at the main island too and had lunch at one of the cafes. On our way back, we stopped by the magnet store and no matter how high they priced it, I was more than willing to pay for it. Just like my future bride. When she comes, I will surely pay dearly for her.