Coming Back: The Equation

I haven't put energy into my blog (or myself) in too long. Sometimes it's hard to be there for myself. After writing up a bunch of ideas on how to get back in touch with myself again I felt overwhelmed. Until I went for an exploration walk. And while doing so, I found the solution to the equation...:

Add "nature" = help it fall back into place...

Seems worth trying.

I might report how it goes.

"Goals are Dreams with Deadlines."

She said it all yesterday: Chloë Lanthier-Brandner.

Perfect Potatoe

Simplicity attracts my eye. How about this combo? It is 1 potatoe, 1 garlic clove, a bowl, and a candle. Experienced and enjoyed during a memorable trip to the Olympic Peninsula in early July 2005.

This is how I feel right NOW.

Endless opportunities. Ready to go. Does anybody else out there needs their share? It's for free...

Stop Waiting

I am all about 'stop waiting'. It appears to be my magic formula these days. I never seem to lack ideas to pursue, just the courage to do so. Not so much lately, however. My speed is scary at times. I need a break.

... and I am about to get one. THE ONE, actually. I have been waiting for an opportunity to head back into the field for 1 1/2 years. The field, to me, represents working hand in hand with struggling teens. Working on surviving. In the woods. Nothing more and not much less. It is my personal heaven. Also called Wilderness Therapy. It has shaped my last 3 1/4 years and will not cease to do so for a while. That's what I call relaxation of the mind... ahhh!

I will be gone for a month - I love how hard it is to leave my home. It is going to be great to return. To my safe refuge upstairs, my plants, that sense of security. I am thrilled to replace it with nature for a while... so many moments to soak it in are about to happen. Stare at rock formations, gaze up to the sky, listen to people, I mean - truly - listen to people. Feel connected. Challenged. And soooo calm. It is about to happen. Gratitude is filling me up, all the way to my fingertips.

Beautiful Soul

I met a wonderful woman as a positive side effect of a psychology assignment yesterday. in order to complete a project I had to interview a - to me previously unknown - elder by asking questions about her life, expectations, and surprises. even though the woman started us out a little scruffy ("all of us are here [assisted living facility] are waiting to die"), we embarked on an incredible voyage through her life shortly thereafter; all the while cat Sara circled around us. my interviewee blew me away - she openly discussed fears, challenges and beauty of her life, which - to say the least - contained intense times. raped at age eleven, daughter of a manic-depressive mother and a disturbingly unsupportive father she married her "highschool-sweetheart" once she turned eighteen. they had three children. by the time she was 34 (and their children 10, 11, and 12) her husband died of a virus within two weeks. the woman went back to school (this is in the early seventies!) and worked towards getting a business degree. her strong will opened doors for her that led to working in real estate. she did so for 25 years, always pursuing high ethics and enjoying the personal contact evolving out of her profession. she lost one of her child in an auto accident, never had another partner, volunteered for the ambulance as an EMT, was the secretary for the local Kiwanis club for ten years, and was diagnosed with breast cancer in the 90's. throughout her life she prefers solitude over crowds, but lives a life governed by the 'butterfly principle': if a butterfly moves its wings in China, it can create a storm on the other side of the earth... she is still living accordingly - and encouraged fellow residents to help her prune the roses in their facility to then dry the petals and create potpurries to sell for their alzheimer unit. she trusts that - even though she would rather be back on her farm - there is a reason for her to reside in a facility now...
I could not have asked for greater inspiration.

definition visual

coarse grass or rank herbage
(Ozette Lake 07/05)

taking the first few steps...

... into my freshly created virtual alpine meadow.