If There’s Room In The Heart, There’s Room For The Butt

Croatian watermelon. Nothing to do with this post.

Yesterday, two dear friends from Canada came by for a visit. 

Why is this worthy of a post?

Because their short visit made my day, it reminded me of the good souls in my life.  

These friends are in Croatia for a vacation. They are here with their kids to create memories, aiming to relax, visit relatives in not one but two countries (Hrvatska and Bosna Hercegovina), soak up the sun, swim, and do whatever else is on their vacation agenda.

Whoa….that’s a lot for a vacation ;)

And I think it’s the norm for many Croatian-Canadians who come to Croatia to vacation.

There is a desire to connect with our relatives and the place our parents/grandparents called home. There is a desire to take in the sites and sounds. There is a desire to unwind.

And that can be a lot to manage while on vacation. 

The plan with my friends was to have an overnight visit.

Those plans changed when one of their kids got sick. We weren’t even sure there would be a visit. And I understood.

So when my friend messaged and said there wouldn’t be a sleepover, but there would be a short visit, I felt the love.

They came by, we exchanged stories and laughs, and they were on their way.  It made my day.

I was telling a friend about their visit. And he told me there’s a Swedish saying:

If there’s room In the heart, there is room for the butt (Finns det hjärterum så finns det stjärterum).

I looked up the idiom and found this translation: There are loads of people at the dinner table, but you want to squeeze in a few more; you will make it happen if you really want to. 

I thought to myself, yes! I hold a space in their hearts (and vice versa), and they did their best to make space for my butt.

Of course, if the visit didn’t happen, I would not have been a jerk about it. They had a sick kid. And this is their vacation.

But it did happen, and I felt the love.

Regardless of yesterday’s outcome, I am grateful for the good souls in my life. I am glad I saw two of them yesterday.

And…

I am thankful my butt has a spot at a few fabulous tables.

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