The WiFi went out unexpectedly that afternoon, and with it disappeared my plans to work, answer emails, and finalize a few trips. Living in Croatia, there is no quick “restart from the provider” the way there often is in the United States. After trying several times to reconnect everything, I finally gave up.
And strangely enough, the day became better because of it.
Instead of sitting behind a screen, I found myself in the kitchen preparing the last gazpacho of the season. Fresh tomatoes, cucumber, olive oil, garlic, simple ingredients that somehow taste richer when they come from your own garden. I also baked eggplant and filled it with goat cheese, garlic, and crushed nuts, already thinking ahead to the next day’s lunch with rucola salad and fresh bread.
As I cooked, Radio Banovina played softly in the background. Old Croatian songs filled the house, songs that instantly transport me to another time and place. Living abroad for much of my life, music has always had that power over me. One melody and suddenly memories return, summers, roads, family, another version of life.
By evening, what had started as a frustrating technology failure had turned into one of those unexpectedly grounding days. The kind that reminds you how little we actually need to feel content.
A simple meal. Familiar music. A quiet kitchen. Time slowing down enough to notice it.