Thinking about merak
The feeling of blissful oneness with the universe
Serbian
“the pursuit of small pleasures every day, which all add up to a feeling of contentment, fulfillment, and oneness with the larger purpose and the universe”
- waking up and knowing there is no reason I have to get out of bed
- writing morning pages with the ‘help’ of a large, black cat
- the smell of coffee brewing as I come down the stairs, even though I don’t drink coffee
- the first sip of my morning tea
- the dance Jeff and I do around each other in the kitchen as we each make our breakfast
- Wordle (some days)
- Jeff’s daily baseball report (we won)
- the breeze in the morning while having breakfast in the backyard
- the view out the bedroom window from my writing chair
- one good sentence
- one good phrase
- one good word
- the friend on Saturday morning who calls across the street, “Did anyone at the farmer’s market have tomatoes?”
- the answer—they did
- the first BLT of the summer
- the last sip of tea
- texts from my daughter
- texts from my sister
- texts from my brother
- texts from my mom
- texts from my dad
- clouds
- blue sky
- the smell of rosemary beside the back door
- the smell of tomato vines after you’ve crawled through them searching out the ripe cherry tomatoes
- ripe cherry tomatoes warmed by the sun bursting in your mouth
- the smell of the curry plant
- the smell of the lemongrass
- the smell of the basil after pinching off the blooms
- the neon greens and pinks and reds of the coleus plants
- sitting on the kitchen couch with Jeff and having a new conversation, even after spending 24 hours a day and 7 days a week together
- the shadows of birds on the wire projected onto the wall like a movie screen
- the dance Jeff and I do around each other in the kitchen as we each make our lunch
- a good book
- a good book on the lounge chair after lunch
- a nap on the lounge chair after lunch
- the disorientation and then gentle return to life after a summer nap on the lounge chair
- the way shade accumulates in the backyard over the course of the day, growing deeper and deeper
- cats curled up in the sun
- cats lying in the middle of the herb garden
- cats rolling and rolling against the sidewalk
- afternoon iced tea
- crunching ice cubes
- the hours and minutes of the day marked by church bells
- the contemplation of dinner with a full pantry and fridge
- the lightning bugs dancing out of the grass at dusk
- the high summer sound of cicadas at night
- the breeze in the evening while having cocktails in the backyard
- lying on the couch together watching Buffy with cats
- clean sheets at bedtime
- a warm body in bed beside you, even in the summertime
- sleep
- dreams
- repeat
Merak brought to you by The Suite Spot, by Trish Doller, an excellent book to read on a lounge chair in summer, right before a nap.
Find more beautiful and untranslatable words from around the world here.
The world feels real ugly sometimes. Wishing you all your own merak this week.
This is wonderful...perfect for the day and our times. I'm reading "The Lincoln Highway" at the moment and fell asleep while stretched out in the chair, so I completely understand the "reading a book after lunch, taking a nap while reading a book after lunch" series. So blissfull. BTW, Amor Towles knows how to end a chapter! Happy 4th, and many thanks for this.
Thanks for the reminder. Read like my day only instead of oneness with the universe, I kept berating myself for not having accomplished anything all day! I'm 74, no one cares what I do; I just need to be grateful for my life. Thanks again.