On sunny Sundays in the Netherlands, we ride our bikes and get lost on Europe’s most enjoyable cycle paths.

In Switzerland, we wear our boots and go hiking in the breathtaking mountains. 

In Greece, we run with or without swimsuits at the boundless blue Mediterranean beaches.

But in all three countries when we decide for some reason to stay within the walls of the cities .. then we have to think about where we want to eat a delicious breakfast. Frühstück or petit-déjeuner!!! 

Yes, what the Americans taught us to call brunch.

We have to admit there’s nothing better than waking up on a lazy March Sunday.  

The first almond trees have bloomed, the cuckoos and chickadees have begun to chirp playfully, the temperature suggests Spring clothes, the erotic mood surrounds you and in an hour you have an appointment to meet your best friends that you haven’t seen for a while and you have missed. 

You have a reservation. Always at the same big round table because you know well that your stay there might last the whole day.

Zurich’s gardens are opening in spring. 

Colorful umbrellas, vintage tables, chaises longues with Stripes 

In one of the most beautiful areas of Zurich to live in, we go together to welcome the new season.  

At Caffe : Des Amis . In  Wipkingen – District 10

If you haven’t visited Zurich, and want to see how the locals live, a great idea is to take tram 7 from the main station and get off at Roslistrasse stop (five stops / ten minutes). Then it’s just a short five-minute downhill walk to the café.

(In one of the next Saturdays you will receive an article specifically about this beloved area and its diamonds) 

If you do it between April and June you will be intoxicated by the amazing aromas of the courtyards. 

The architecture of the buildings is impressive. 

Old Zurich of the last century in its splendor.

The wonderful bistro is so popular for brunch that you should definitely book in advance. 

But if you still get there spontaneously, the polite staff will surely find a solution. 

Warm cheerful atmosphere ….tolerable coffee, and many vegetarian smart choices on the menu.

Some special evenings like last Wednesday, we meet there for mussels or better “Moules Frites”! 

We order white wine and we dive into the deep end. We start with the news of the week, the successes, the intangible moments, we move on to the war. That’s where the discussion comes to a head. The voices rise to higher pitches but finally, we decide in a magical step to move on to a subject that calms us all down. 

„Forgiveness”

Opening a bottle of Swiss wine and watching the corkscrew insidiously and torturously penetrate the cork, forcing its detachment from the bottle, creating a sound of freedom … I can’t help but think of ….

We are at a moment in history when each one of us is so exposed to information, images, communication! 

Shame, noise, raised fingers, political correctness, fake news, make us vulnerable. 

The boundaries of discretion are lost. 

To write a harsh comment under a post or send a venomous email is something that you may regret a few hours later.

When you are very young, you don’t forgive at all.

Or you forgive with great ease. 

You are on the edge because you don’t know who you are yet, you are still learning. 

It’s wonderful how the blood that runs through our veins at 25yo makes us impulsive, rebellious, explosive, convicting. 

We cut the thread with an underlying angry confidence, stating cliché phrases stolen from Hollywood movies or simple drama lines, taken from the environment we grew up in. 

Everything is black or white. 

On the other hand, our need in this tender age to fit in somewhere, to belong, to create “bonds and relationships” pushes us to an unfiltered tolerance. 

We embrace and forget. We don’t go deeper. We want to have fun. 

The Heart that beats loudly is our guide. 

We think the love we have inside us is so strong that it can forget. 

The bad training of the good child that when they slap it on one cheek, it will turn the other like Jesus Christ .. will always be decisive for our course.

In defining maturity you need to be more diplomatic. More peaceful. Contracts have been signed but even if they have to be resolved, there will always be the least belligerent solution. As you grow older you accept more, negotiate with terms, compromise and slyly wink at life and its imperfections. 

You learn to forgive by understanding. You know well what your own faults are. You recognize that what makes you angry at others is a mirror that rises up in front of you. 

Of course, you don’t forget. You ought to remember, the wrongs, the mistakes, and the recklessness. 

But to move on you must say, I forgive you. 

If you don’t, then the relationship becomes full of emptiness, silences, and tension.

The smiling girl serves the wine in our glasses. Her experience is not great but her kindness and care touch me. She apologizes when a drop accidentally falls on my white tablecloth. She means it. It was a mistake. 

I smile playfully at her and she, whose cheeks are flushed, runs to serve the next table.

The mussels are so excellent that we immediately move on to the second bottle. 

There are a few seconds of silence. We look at each other. The bodies have relaxed. Hearts have opened.

That light fragrant breeze coming through the door reminds us that we can still dream of the summers to come. We are lucky that we can argue and react by shouting like little children.

We are blessed that we have learned to put aside our egos and say “I am  Sorry”. We are bright when we are happy and say: “It’s okay, I forgive you”. Your punishment will be a warm hug, a treat with a bottle of wine, and a pot of mussels in a spring garden in Zurich.

Welcome spring.

A favorite film about forgiveness … atonement … redemption …