Last Tango in Switzerland

Please, just for me, forget the steps... Hold me, feel the music, and give me your soul. Then I can give you mine. ~ SallyCat


It's my last evening in Switzerland, the last dance in this pretty little city situated in the middle of the country and, pretty much, the center of Europe, the last tango on the cobble stone streets in the old part of Zug with peoples from many countries around the world. I enjoy the cosmopolitan atmosphere of Zug where everyone seems to be from somewhere else, where dinner with my friend and his friends is a conversational dance through Poland, Denmark, Hungary, Slovakia, America, quite possibly, very likely, anywhere in the world, in a decidedly Italian bistro overlooking the sea, bathed in the orange glow as the sun sets gently beyond the horizon.

The lead in the conversational ballet is always changing as words sway to the smile, the nod, the eye brow raised in wonder at the stories shared by the many dance partners, the eyes dancing in the candlelight as we share of ourselves. To try and dominate the conversation, to try and always be in control is to kill the soul of the conversation, to stamp on the very rhythm that comes when lovers embrace. To try and drive the conversation is to miss the ebb and flow of the music, the music that, at times, brings intense interchange, at times, is a murmur as you watch your friends smiling broadly while you take a drink of the brilliant red wine and swirl it over your tongue before letting it trickle down your throat.

Good conversation is always a give and take, an ebb and flow, a deep breathing of sweet air. It's the building of story upon story upon story creating a beautiful tapestry with the fingerprint of each person woven deeply in the design. It is the sharing of our lives, the interaction of souls bringing the tapestry to pulsating life that grows more intensely colorful as each person weaves in the threads of their life experiences.

Meaningful conversation always leaves the feeling that one has been enriched, leaves one feeling that a bond was crafted out of words, out of speaking but, primarily, out of listening, primarily out of giving one's full attention to the speaker, primarily out of letting the speaker know that they are worth the listener's time. Meaningful conversation always leaves all parties feeling valued for the uniqueness with which they bless the world, always leaves the dancers waiting for the next song, always leaves the participants anticipating the next tango in Switzerland.