This bag has seen better days for sure. But I just didn't have the heart to let it leave until today. You see it smiling at you up there? It's top curved pocket just beaming up at you? That is one happy bag, right there. It's been to Italy. And France. And Ireland. And India. It's kept would-be theivers at bay with its array of hidden and hard-to-reach pockets. It's seen torrential rain storms and layovers. And not to mention the millions of bike rides it's been on. That bag has discovered the world with me. And it's seen me through even discovering myself a little bit. Sure its faux leather is bubbling and tearing at the top, and it's missing a few zipper pulls. But that's life showing through, right there. I once had a pair of brown suede flats that I LOVED. Smitten might even be an appropriate word here. They were my first pair of ballet flats, and I'm pretty sure I wore them every single day (including in Europe) for at least two years. When the time came to retire them, I walked into Nordstrom wearing the then-beraggled shoes and marched myself into the shoe department.
"Can I help you?" the kind older woman attendant said.
"Yes," I responded, "I need a new pair of flats to replace these ones." I pointed to my feet. "But don't look at my feet too hard," I hurried along, "It's embarrassing how long I have waited to get new shoes." I smiled awkwardly, trying to shield my feet a little with outstretched hands.
"Oh honey," she said sweetly, "Those aren't worn. They're just well loved."
And it made me feel great.
And so it is with the shoes and my first-ever travel bag. Sure you show some good old signs of wear and tear, but there are also a whole lotta signs of love in there. Thanks for be such a great travel companion all these years, and never losing my passport or my wallet or my schedule or my chapstick. That was really really great of you.
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