Xenia

As I was taking this photo, just off the main square, an elderly man approached and asked if I knew whose house it was. "No", I said, so he proceeded to tell me, not that it meant much to me. He probably wondered why in the world I was photographing it.

A quote I copied down from p620 of The Overstory (amazing book!): "The Greeks had a word, xenia - guest friendship - a command to take care of traveling strangers, to open your door to whoever is out there, because anyone passing by, far from home, might be God." Thought what a great name that would be for our Land.

We met one today, as we walked back over the battlements - Luís, a 28yr old architect surveying the castle because he dreams of restoring it. Not exactly far from home, as he was brought up here, but a stranger to us. We brought him home for a while, he loved our tiny house. Special guy, and very good-looking!

Gratefuls:
- taking Maria and Zé, from the market, for lunch at Sr Zé's
- meeting a young person with a great, huge dream
- deciding to go to Évora in a minute, need to get a gift for a Secret Santa on Tuesday, and we won't have the car Monday...and maybe the cinema as well -"The Aeronauts", possibly.