Tidal Waters Quotes

“What will happen if I let myself fall apart, if I stop pretending I'm strong, and scream and cry? What if one morning I decide I don't want to get out of bed? That will probably come about before too long, as it has done before. Meanwhile, I carry on in this role.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“I imagined encountering you with a huge sack of words, pulling out great gleaming handfuls and flinging them into the air for everyone around, and then sometimes, slowly and carefully, you;d take just a few words from that enormous sack and offer them in response to my own vast, translucent and ever-visible sack full of words that are trying to shine. I want to believe that the words you give in answer to mine come from a secret pocket in that huge sack of yours, and that perhaps they're weightier words, special and carefully chosen. But I also realise this is how jealous people console themselves.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“It occurs to me that our feeling for each other is like the tide: we're always there, sometimes closer-- high tide-- and sometimes further away-- low tide-- but always present. And when we see each other, we're like fireflies. All flickering, magical, necessary for life.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“This evening, as I watched the sun set behind the jungle on the other side of the Atrato, I thought about how it all comes down to sowing seeds of hope. What you do, what I do, is read aloud to other people the story that encourages us every day, the story that says that just a bit further on, round the corner from that decision or that extra bit of effort, written on the page of a book, in the scent of some saplings or the taste of a plate of food, is the life we have always dreamed of.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“Through the sea and these letters I want to find calm. Surely life is holding the solution to all the other problems just around the corner. It always has done before, and I hope this is no exception.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“So on I go, dealing with the everyday challenges. And with each day I feel more encouraged by the idea that I've made the best decision. It's just that I'm more thoughtful now. Water still flows within me, but more gently. I'm not longer that wild sea, those crashing waves; I'm the bay when it's calm, deep, almost still.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“Luckily I've learnt to always look for solutions, even when I was very young. But there are days when my heart plays dirty tricks on me, or my head does; days when I'm more vulnerable and have to deal with the pain, and then I cry a lot, like now, while I'm writing to you.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“I sometimes feel there's an old woman somewhere out in the universe, weaving my life with meticulous care. Each thread is carefully chosen: it seems she never misses a thing, never forgets my old desires, and likes to play at working in wonderful coincidences that brings a smile to my lips. I'm not sure if the end result is like a motete, or if it's closer to a mola tapestry because of all the colours, or if it's a multi-coloured motete.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“Thank you for being there, even without knowing it.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“In Tumaco I revealed my body. Who would have thought that so many miles south would be the setting for a meeting with a lover? Strange, magical things often happen to me, and it seems this is no exception.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“P.S. Writing to you means telling myself the story of my life in a different tone. I find it soothing as well. It's a way of taking a step back and seeing what I am and what I do from a distance, which shows how insignificant some of the things are that overwhelm me in everyday life. When you say that what I write to you brightens your days, you brighten mine in return. Writing, then, becomes like a circle of joy between us.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“Some months ago I was saying with total certainty that Choco is where I belong in the world, the place I need to be, my base, from which I can go anywhere and still always return, and where I feel complete even though it lacks so many things, and I wasn't wrong.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“It's been raining a lot. The downpours are so particular to this jungle, and so heavy, that sometimes I find them impossible to describe. I believe in the power of this rain and these seas.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“There's something I call absence of sea. It's a particular sensation, a series of singular emotions that take hold when it's a long time since I last saw the sea. It's a kind of yearning, and so physical-- I notice it on my skin-- that you could say it's like getting the shivers. It makes me feel almost homesick, and on the verge of sadness, even if it's a happy time. Then my every pore starts crying out, and I know for sure that what I"m missing is the sea. Gazing at each other, touching each other: me and the sea. So whenever I have that sensation I need to hurry to the nearest place where we can be reunited at last.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters

“You know me, I'm just like the Pacific. I can be calm one minute and then suddenly break into great powerful waves, which crash down and end up changing the landscape. The things that happen to people, the cycles of the moon, or simply life itself, have led me to a decision that many people find strange, though to us it seems almost obvious.”
― Velia Vidal, Tidal Waters