The Look

Why had she gone alone again? Suddenly, she was having second thoughts. She had never been able to talk any of her friends into going; and tours didn’t allow you to explore on your own. She knew the sites would only look more worn and dingy, but speaking French with the “natives”, was so enjoyable to her, and she loved Paris! She loved the history of it, the architecture, the mood, the cafe’s, riding the Metro and walking the curved streets; the smell of the bakeries and the food. She also knew that if she had gone with someone else, then she probably would have spent more time speaking English than French, and she loved speaking French. Safely in her room, she fell across the bed just to take a short nap before going to dinner. While sleeping, she dreamt of the sights that she would see again: Versailles, Invalides, Notre Dame, Le Musee’ D’Armee’, etc. She always smiled thinking that even if you were angry and tried to curse at someone, in French, whatever you said still sounded wonderful! After sleeping longer than she had expected, she got up to go to the bathroom. Then, she returned to her bed, and fell into a deeper sleep. This time she dreamed of Bill. He never aged. He was always smiling and reaching out to her. He never spoke, but she knew he loved her by the way he looked at her. When she awakened this time, her cheeks were damp. She had been crying! She wondered why Bill had ever shown up in her life. Why, if they were only to know each other for a semester? What had been the point? That would be one of the questions she would ask God when she finally met him face to face! Chapter Four On her third day, before venturing out; she spent some time reviewing her map of Paris and plans for the day. As she was exiting the hotel she collided with a man who was crossing her path just outside the entrance. The force of the collision caused her to stumble, drop her purse and nearly fall. Luckily, the man was able to grab her arm, and before she could pick up her purse, he grabbed it too.