Every morning on my way to class, I get off at the Nørreport station and walk by, though recently I've been biking, this farmers market with the most colorful assortment of flowers and fruit. Last week was the first Wednesday that I didn't have a field study, which was sort of sad because I had really enjoyed my field studies. BUT it was also the reason I decided to stop and look around at this fruit stand that I pass every day. I was super excited because my oh my did these strawberries (my •favorite• food) look good. They always do! As I was looking around, the happy bald man behind the little wooden stand with a big beaming smile on his face looked at me and said "hej!" I smiled back, walked a little closer, and told him how beautiful everything looked. He said thank you, and that he loved his work; then I asked him how long he had worked at the stand. He said about few years. His name was Andres and he made my day.
I picked up an apple, and asked if I could take a picture of his delightful strawberries. I'm not quite sure he understood me because he responded "yes, please please take one," but gesturing to grab one of the cartons. I snapped a quick shot and said "oh, thank you," and proceeded to buy the apple. But, before I even took a single step, he said no, no, no "please, take one yes take one, you can have one!" And he pointed to the strawberries. I was rattled, but in the best way. He picked up one of the cartons and handed it to me. It made me smile so B I G. I introduced myself, gave him a hug and wished him a good day.
I smile and wave at Andres every time I pass by now. He is so quick to give me a hug and tell me to have a good day. Short and sweet, but oh so meaningful.
Everything's a little bit smaller here in Denmark. The strawberries. The cars. The coffee cups. But the strawberries are so delicious! The cars are more fuel efficient. And the coffee's still so good. Andres told me, in Dinglish (Danish with a little bit of English), that there are no preservatives in the fruit in Denmark. Hence, it's normal sized (and it goes bad faster... so buy wisely)! It's one of the things I love most about this place. The lack of saturation and fake unnecessary add-ons. I think far too often, even in conversation, people try to be overly saturated and not just say what's on your mind; or have the preconceived notion that bigger is better. It's not. It's the little things that count. Like a kind old man offering a free container of strawberries, a hug, and a smiling effort to have a less than five minute conversation. That means a whole lot, at least to me.
Apparently Denmark is actually one of the top most organic consuming nations in the world! How neat.
Have a sunshiney day!
Morgan
