✨🇬🇷 “Λέω ότι κάποιος θα μας θυμάται στο μέλλον. Someone will remember us, I say. Even in another time.” - Sappho I finally made it to the Χωριό. The village that raised my grandfather and many generations before him. A bittersweet place filled with history, belonging, and grief. My grief for my dear grandfather has always been a longing. A longing to remember. A longing to know him and where he came from. I wrote this piece for my thesis to articulate this longing: “Can you be homesick for somewhere you’ve never been? I can smell the stone and salt of the village – what did she call it? The Χωριό. I see it. The rocks roll under my feet. The sun warms my skin though I’ve never come within a thousand miles of the shore. It’s... it’s somewhere I know. I’m filled with memories that I’ve never lived, but they follow me everywhere I go. A ghost rattling me awake and then soothing me back to sleep. I’ve never been more sure it’s my home, yet I’ve never seen it. I’ve lived my life detached from this piece of earth I’ve never walked on. Is this what she felt?” I miss you, grandpa. I’m so honored to have finally set foot in our homeland. To walk, swim, cry, and dance where my ancestors stood. Thank you, Σκάλα Ερεσού, for your warmth. For welcoming me home. I will be back very soon. #family #ancestry #greekheritage #greekamerican #grief #lesvos #homeland #finally