We are close together because was for safety. You go out of village alone, maybe someone kill you, rape you. We are together, always together like animals to hunt. You come here you see this one French,* that one from somewhere Africa, friend for you but not close. But not kill you.
An important point, that. But memory does soften the edges of even terrible events. And even more in Jelena's defense, friendship and support soften the edge of terrible events too. She would likely choose again to come here. But the loss is real.
*Milan lives in Suncook, I think, so French-Canadian is likely
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Military men have the same wistfulness about the Band of Brothers, though they're happy to escape the war and go home. Wouldn't it be nice if we could get the intimacy under fire without the fire?
But the loss is real.
That's an observation that bears a lot of thinking about. It is so important to be able to accept that something was for the best and still understand that a loss of some sort was involved. (And that acknowledging that loss is not the same as wishing the good thing hadn't happened.)
More social, political and historical examples than I can shake a stick at, as well of course as examples in just about everyone's life....
Everything has a cost. Sometimes it's money. Sometimes it's emotional. "Piece of my heart", as we say.
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