Albert

Right next to the entrance to The Gesher Theatre in Jaffa there is a tiny cafe, which owes its name to a certain bear. Albert is a bear-traveler. At the beginning he was only a product of a child's imagination, but one day he slipped beyond its borders and that's how a place, called for many of its customers a "home" was brought to life. All of Albert's belongings are hidden in a blue purse, which our sweet bear never leaves behind. The blue purse carries all the memories from Albert's adventures.

Albert is showing his age already, so it's clear that a dozen of expeditions took place in his life. He stopped here and there. Sometimes there, where the sun was shining beautifully, sometimes here, where the sea and its quiet waves could heal the wounds inflicted by life. Sometimes Albert stopped somewhere, where something was happening, and sometimes, where there was not happening anything at all. Sometimes Albert paused in his adventure only for a moment. Tired of the journey he was waiting for a train, plane or ship (ships he liked the most), which will take him even further beyond the horizon. Sometimes bear stopped for a long time with the hope of finding someone to join the expedition, because it's briskly to travel together. And although Albert did not have a camera, every day more and more pictures from his trips were placing into the blue pouch on his arm. How strange, colorful and beautiful was this album of travel memories...

In the pouch there were monasteries of the Greek islands, a big white sails of Italian ships, rowan necklaces from Mazury. The wild forests full of black berries and a flock of wild geese. The paddy fields and pink lakes, coral reefs and the Lisbon trams. Houses with red brick and mountain streams. Sour wine and sweet cherries. Guitar, piano and a dozen of street cats. The Persian bracelets and multicolored Indian pendants were clinking in the purse too. There were hibiscus flowers, an old nargila and Muslim mosques inside. There were black eyes, strange tattoos and smiles of passing pedestrians too.

Although there was obviously much more memories, our bear could still bear his purse easily. Heavier than the bag was only a thought in the bear's heart that there will be always a place where Albert will not be... When someone close to his heart will cry far away, Albert will not be there. When someone will be born or someone will be dying, Albert will not be there. Albert will be far away.  This thought was so heavy that one day bear needed a moment to sit down on a hot stone to soothe his saddened heart.  That day he suddenly realized that if you live from day to day, if you travel around the world in search of your path, if due to your inner need of owning a home you built one wherever you stop... something extraordinary happens. When you stop for a moment of time, your time for a moment stops with you. This is your chance to get settled. That's how the places that at first seem to be simple stops, slowly become your havens. And the path creates itself.  But to make it happen, to make it possible, your heart needs to balance the weight of the blue pouch with a growing recollection of what you left behind. Otherwise, any journey would not be possible.

Go on Albert! Go on with your adventure! And you and you and you!