This sweet man reminded me so much of my grandpa, and I just have to share the story! 😊
For several weeks, you could see him around the streets playing the Bodhrán, that traditional Irish drum that looks like a giant tambourine, as you can see in the photo 🥁.
He always had his little radio playing Irish music and would drum along on his Bodhrán 🎵, with a huge smile, full of joy, chatting with everyone. Sure, he had his case out for tips, but that clearly wasn’t the point. When you do things from the heart…
He was usually joined by a friend of his, a man with a huge white beard, also around his age, who played the flute and other melodic instruments 🎻
I bumped into them during the time I was staying at the hostel, and every time we crossed paths we’d talk, they’d ask me where I’m from, what I’m doing in Ireland, and they’d give me amazing life advice ☺️
Always the same conversation. Always. Always the same advice. Always.
And always with the same energy, the same joy, the same glowing smile. Always.
It made me a little sad, because they didn’t remember our past conversations, but whenever we saw each other, I loved starting over with kindness. I didn’t care how many times we’d done it — the key word here is with kindness ❤️
They reminded me of my grandpa — in their energy, in their attitude, in how much they loved what they were doing and that that was all that mattered.
Just like my grandpa with his passions, they were out there playing all day and night.
And just like my grandpa, they had something kind to say to everyone.
And just like my grandpa, all they wanted was love.
And just like with my grandpa, it didn’t matter how many times you repeated the same conversation, you always walked away with something new.
And all of this makes me reflect on how, even though I’ve had some conversations millions and millions of times in my life, and they’re engraved in my memory, I’d give anything to have them just one more time.
PS: the photo is from one of the times we ran into each other! I was with my friend Luis from @destinoikigai and we had such a fun moment with one of “the hostel gentlemen” ☺️🎉
#bodhran #charmingpeople