day 12: all around astoria

we didn't even touch our bikes today. they are resting, like us.

we slept in because we had nowhere to be and then ate a delicious breakfast at the coffee shop down the block. this photo probably says more about the meal than words, except what it is we actually ate.

(we started with the brownie.)

we walked around a bit afterward and discussed what we would like to eat for lunch (and do for the rest of the day). but before any of those energy consuming activities, we headed back to our room and laid in bed. ahhhh, so relaxing. 

the walk to get burritos (what we decided on for lunch) took us about 1.5 miles away in rain and wind. we devoured the food and then walked across to the opposite end of town to catch xmen on opening day.

(all wet)

the big news of the day was that samuel got some blisters from walking barefoot in crocs. 

after xmen, we came back to the room and rested to recover from sitting through an action-packed movie. 

(view from the bed) 

and lastly, we made another giant salad and shared mango for dessert to cap the night. samuel never wants to leave astoria and i am beginning to itch to hop on my bike again. i'm eager to see this amazing oregon coast EVERYONE raves about. plus, we still have about 1400 miles to go! (we are officially 25% done.)

tonight, i'm feeling grateful for time to chat with my sisters on the phone, hold hands with samuel, and rest. tomorrow, i ride!!! :-)

to be a monk. or, just a wannabe.

it's hard to believe that i've been back in the bay for 11 days. just one day longer than i was in montana. the past 11 days have gone by too quickly, too busily, too too much of everything. as a point of comparison, the richness of each day in montana easily flowers into my memory, alive with every detail. but i can barely remember the whirlwind of activity that has been whizzed past me in the same amount of time. how unfortunate! i regret allowing my mind to get overwhelmed by a belief that i needed to fill my time and "be productive."

more than ever before, i've been acutely bothered by the pace of life and the insane drive here in the silicon valley. i feel a growing desire to move away from the frenetic silicon valley beat, and instead, find and listen attentively to the native rhythm of life. what might that feel like? what would that look like?

thankfully, i am flying to france on wednesday to spend ten uninterrupted days on a tiny island called Île-aux-Moines -- or, "island of the monks." part of my fiance's family is from france, so we're making a trip to visit with them and to rest.

i have been told that no cars are allowed on this island, and that everyone travels by bicycle or on foot. i'm looking forward to just being there, observing, loving, laughing, enjoying, slowing,... and i'm especially looking forward to picking up my camera again. it has collected a bit of dust over the past few months, and i feel the tiniest itch that the island will awaken me creatively.

illness is grounding.

i've written countless blog posts lately...all of course, in my mind.

right now, there are kids being quite animal-like, screaming their heads off playing in a bouncy house caddy corner from the back of the barn, my neighbor's obnoxiously loud fountain is splashing into the pool, a very slow cool breeze is oozing in from the window next to the couch i'm slouched on typing this post. it's 10:27am on saturday and all i've done today is wake up, take out my compost, eat some breakfast and wondered. and now, i'm here.

what was going to be a very rich (and full) weekend has turned into a completely idle one because i got sick. really sick. like, at-the-hospital-getting-fluids-and-morphine-through-an-iv-kind-of-sick. over a week of abdominal pain finally landed me at urgent care, drugged up and feeling very weak. and although it caused some anxiety for my colleagues and family and perhaps inconveniences for some of my friends, it was still a huge gift to get sick!

part of this morning's wondering involved what i would do today. "could i go for a bike ride? maybe a run? who could i call? maybe i'll go for a walk. i know, maybe i will go to my friend's artist reception 1 1/2 hours from here! i feel better! yeah, yeah!!"  and then entered a wise old voice who asked if i should be resuming life as usual, the moment i felt an ounce better. perhaps staying at home this weekend might be worth consideration.

to just be here. 

present to my healing body, listening for what it asks for and not telling it to wait until i have my fun, but to give it exactly what it needs when it needs it. present to this beautiful space i dwell in and to the people who live here. present to the bed of little greens that are taking root and growing their tiny little leaves. 

so i'm here with the cool breeze, the remaining kids still playing outside, and the quiet that comes when my neighbors finally turn off their fountain.

present.

quote | there is no rush

The theology of progress forces us to act before we are ready. We speak before we know what to say. We respond before we feel the truth of what we know. In the process, we inadvertently create suffering, heaping imprecision upon inaccuracy, until we are all buried under a mountain of misperception.


But Sabbath says, Be still. Stop. There is no rush to get to the end, because we are never finished. Take time to rest, and eat, and drink, and be refreshed. And in the gentle rhythm of that refreshment, listen to the sound the heart makes as it speaks the quiet truth of what is needed.
Wayne Muller


Source: Sabbath, Restoring the Sacred Rhythm of Rest