We went to the beach last Thursday after quite a few weeks of many obligations, activities, and doing work for several of our involvements in community and politics. With deep breaths, we took a breather.
And a lovely breather it was. The weather was a cool warm and the sunlight illuminated the landscapes. Clouds and rain played tag up in the sky as we drove west. Sometimes silver, sometimes golden light, lit the curvaceous agricultural landscapes when we passed through the foothills; the lichen-coated, moss-coated tree branches were turned various shades of gold, grey, and green. Fields of mustard in deep greens and yellows spread on either side of the highway and were doing little dances in the wind.
Then the ever present startle of the behemoth Haystack Rock, and the sound and smell of stormy water with huge whitecaps. Ahhhhhh. We were there to just be, and that’s what happened for 3 wonderful days of rest.
I think our new stage of life asserted what we wanted and needed very clearly. Do whatever you feel like doing, which meant no need to go anywhere, except an occasional walk. I sat, just sat, or walked in the sand and just stared out at the ocean, at the birds, at the sky, at the rocks, at the people and the dogs. I didn’t think: I just stayed in the moment of observing, (usually with delight, at happy little ones, frolicking dogs, wonderful parents playing with the children. I was content.
Paul and I enjoyed homemade meals, by candlelight at dinner, and with full ocean views for breakfast and lunch. The first morning we brought crepes home. When we watched the spectacular sunsets we just watched, (ok I took a couple of photos, as did Paul).
So now we’re home. Today Ai Chi, then a walk somewhere. It will be 71 degrees and full sun here in Portland. Cherry trees, plum trees, camellias, Daphne odora, verbena, forsythia, narcissus, daffodils, crocuses, vinca, all are in bloom. As Danny Kaye sang in The CourtJester, “Life could not better be.”
And at my stage of life, being is enough.
