August 2017

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Reluctant

One final paragraph of advice: do not burn yourselves out. Be as I am – a reluctant enthusiast….a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure. It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here. So get out there and hunt and fish and mess around with your friends, ramble out yonder and explore the forests, climb the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, the lovely, mysterious, and awesome space. Enjoy yourselves, keep your brain in your head and your head firmly attached to the body, the body active and alive, and I promise you this much; I promise you this one sweet victory over our enemies, over those desk-bound men and women with their hearts in a safe deposit box, and their eyes hypnotized by desk calculators. I promise you this; You will outlive the bastards.

Edward Abbey

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Kissing

Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.

Thich Nhat Hanh

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For a a very long time, and for no reason good enough to fathom, I didn’t like red-hot pokers. I’d see them on our Portland ambles and regard them with disdain. Silly me, because, as I have obviously come to know, they are pretty fabulous. Hummingbirds and bees love them, too! Since the garden is in its nascent stage, I only have four of them in blossom at the moment, which, truth be told, looks kind of sad. On their own, however, smiling for the camera, they are right gorgeous. This one is T A L L, too, nearly as tall as I am! Insert snickers about my height here, but that’s darned impressive for a flower.

This is a volunteer something or other. I’ll let you know if it produces anything edible!

Testament to our Portland-esque weather as of late – there are scads of mushrooms all around the town, these being the finest specimens.

The lily pond at our local park is also in fine form. So many blossoms!

Practically perfect Palisade peach pie. Homemade! For my Portland peeps, the Palisade peach has the same gravitas as a Hermiston Melon. So, you know, deeelicious.

We rise at the same hour of the day, witnessing the changing of the season, darker and darker we go. What a sweet reward to ascend the wee hills of Palmer Park to witness the splendor of morning. How I love the light!

This past weekend, we spent a busy Saturday up north, enjoying brunch with my parents, games and treats with my Grandpa, and an adorable Wonder Woman birthday party for my cousin’s sixth birthday. I brought my camera, of course, but bumps along the road turned it on and drained my battery. I had this perfect frame, my sweet cousin giddy at the sight of a cascade of bubbles, but could not take the shot. I was heart sick – a wonderful moment and nothing to show for it. After I fretted for a bit about it, I realized it was a gift. Rather than dashing around the party, trying to get the perfect shot, I sat happily in one place, still-like and very present. I heard all the whoops and hollers; crunches of chips and bites of cake; the splash of water; and voices – of children, parents, family, and friends. How lucky I was not to have missed it.

Immortal

The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.

Bruce Lee

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Shout Out

To my LGBTQ, Native, Black, Asian, Latino & Latina, Muslim, Jewish, Indian, Disabled brothers and sisters: I see you. I honor and respect you and our differences. I am, in my sometimes very quiet way, fighting for you and the rights of us ALL. We can do this!

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