A Time for Every Season

We've had an absolutely stunning fall here in the Pacific Northwest with incredible weather and spectacular fall colors.  As we close out October, I know the warm days are numbered and with the time change next weekend, it will feel much more like winter than autumn.  

I'm practicing my photography every chance I get.  I've read a lot of articles and watched some helpful youtube videos and have gotten some hints.  I see things around me now and feel compelled to take a photo. My poor husband hears, "Stop the car, I need to take a picture of that!" My enthusiasm for capturing morning light has been getting me up and out early in the day.  Morning has never been my favorite till after two strong cups of coffee, but there's amazing beauty out there when the early sun hits the trees and lights them up.  I've posted some of my captures on the social media sites, but I thought I'd put together a little montage of some of the images for your enjoyment.  The next collection of photos could well be snow scenes!  Wherever you are, find beauty in the season that it is.  The days pass from one to the other quickly, so take time to pause, breathe and take in this amazing planet that we live on.  It's a pretty incredible place.  

Living Life Loudly

I’m a people watcher.  It’s not only entertaining but you learn a lot.  People reveal a lot about themselves by the way they move, the way they interact, the way they navigate what’s going on around them.  One of the positive things about being an introvert is that often I tend to stay in the background to watch and listen.  It gives me the ability to pick up on subtle nuances of behavior.  I like to read the room before I engage.  I also like to have time to think before I respond, which can sometimes make conversation with people I don’t know feel awkward.  Big gatherings where I don’t know anyone and have to make small talk are something I try to avoid at all cost.   

We’ve all probably had those times of sitting on a bench in a busy place watching the people go by.  Some meander, some walk like they have somewhere important to be, some look deep in thought, others are smiling or talking to someone, some are so intent on their phone screens that you wonder how they don’t crash into something. Sometimes you can read their mood just by their body language and facial expressions.  I always smile at people who make eye contact, hoping they don’t actually start talking to me. 

Being a people reader, I sometimes find that what someone is saying does not necessarily match up with what they are doing.  If you take the time to watch and listen, you begin to pick up on little behaviors that reveal character.  An example is someone who talks a big game, but it’s very much to hide their insecurities.  Ever know someone who uses humor to cover their true feelings about someone or a situation?  We all know that person who talks about what they own or what they’ve accomplished instead of anything personal about feelings or relationships.  There are those who want to be acknowledged or receive recognition for their “generosity”, and if they don’t get it, they will point it out. 

As I observe the people I come into contact with, I am most inspired by those who invest themselves into doing for others or taking on things that no one else wants to do without any desire for recognition.  You know, the humble servants among us.  You never hear about a lot of what they do because they don’t talk about it, they just go about doing it.  They take on the dirty jobs when no one is looking.  The give anonymously. They see a need and quietly meet it.  Their reward is not something tangible, it’s a satisfaction that can only be felt in the heart. 

Who are those quiet souls around you who bless people and never strive for reward, not even a “thank you”?  I have a feeling their reward is a confidence that they are making life a little better or even a lot better and don’t need to be told they are.  They know they are the hands and feet of God and that’s all the thanks they need. 

Being a writer, of course words are important to me and I hope the writing is an encouragement to those who read. But even more, I hope I “practice what I preach”. The other day I encountered a quote that I wrote in my journal so I wouldn’t forget it.  It’s something William Channing said, “May your life preach more loudly than your lips.”  The way we live speaks volumes more than anything we say.  Words can be helpful, but living out what we believe carries far more weight.  I want to strive to speak quietly and live loudly.  Hopefully my thoughts can become actions without ever having to say a word, and perhaps the way I live my life will be all I will need to say. 

Transformation

Pages turning one by one,

known is morphing into unfamiliar.

Change is not frightening, but unsettling;

embrace it and the fear is defeated.

Ready your heart for the unknown; it holds no power.

Wait for the fog to clear, for the wave to crest.

Be confident that you can ride it and see the shore.

Walk out of the surf like you own it. You do. You own the future.

Let change change you. Transformed. Empowered. Uplifted.

Your heart feels the shift but absorbs it.

Growth makes you capable of adapting. Faith helps you trust the future.

Release the need to know. Capable. Equipped. Emboldened.

Grasp your dreams with both hands.

Let change be the fuel for imagination.

Lift your eyes.  Open your heart. The future’s wide open.

Step into it bravely, rejoicing in feeling alive and reborn.

Remember That One Time....?

Memory is a fascinating thing.  It’s certainly something we rely on in a huge way. If we didn’t have it we wouldn’t remember to get dressed in the morning, or know how to drive our cars, or who the people around us are.  It’s interesting how some of us are good at recalling names or numbers or lists. Some remember more visual aspects of life like faces and places. I just recently heard from someone who had multiple concussions as a youth and now has long-term memory issues. Memory stops working as efficiently as we get older. People who get dementia or Alzheimer’s tend to be able to remember the past much better than the present.  It’s also been proven that our memory functions can fail us or make us remember things that didn’t actually happen that way.

An article from Harvard University, which has done extensive studies regarding memory function says this: “In its simplest form, memory refers to the continued process of information retention over time. It is an integral part of human cognition, since it allows individuals to recall and draw upon past events to frame their understanding of and behavior within the present and makes sense of the future. Memory operates according to a "dual-process," where more unconscious, more routine thought processes (known as "System 1") interact with more conscious, more problem-based thought processes (known as "System 2"). At each of these two levels, in turn, there are the processes through which we "get information in" (encoding), how we hold on to it (storage), and how we "get it back out" (retrieval or recall).”  In other words, it’s a very complicated function of our brain.  As we age, the intricate process begins to have gaps in functionality. Trust me, if you’re not there yet, you will be. 

Some of you may remember (if your memory allows) NBC news anchor Brian Williams. In an evening newscast, he purported to being in a helicopter that was shot down in Iraq when he was covering a story there. One of the crew members of that helicopter outed him saying that Brian was not on that chopper when it went down. Williams was immediately fired from NBC and publicly humiliated for embellishing the story. He accepted his fate quietly, but the podcast “Revisionist History” (link in notes at the end of this post) interviewed Williams who said that his memory of the incident was true to the story he told. It’s a fascinating podcast that discusses the accuracy of memory and how our minds may trick us into believing things happened in a way they didn’t. 

There was an incident in my childhood that I remember as clear as day. I was about four years old and early one morning I followed my dad to the barn while he milked our dairy cow.  When we came back into our house, my nine-year-old sister had attempted to make breakfast and her pajamas had caught fire. My dad immediately smothered her and put the fire out, but that sort of traumatic incident sticks in your memory. A number of years later, I related that story to my dad. He informed me that I was not in the room when it happened. The question remains: did he not remember I was in the room or had I heard the retelling of the story and made it my own memory?   

Most of my life I’ve had what they call a “photographic memory”. I have the rare ability to be able to picture something and remember all the details of it by “reseeing” that information. It was great for school when I could read a page and take a mental picture of the text and recall it for exams. I can still take a mental photo of places we have been which helps me recall the name and details of that particular location, what we did there and who we were with. It’s not perfect always, but surprisingly accurate most of the time.  

Harvard gives us some helpful hints for hanging onto our memory function. They suggest eating right, exercising and getting adequate sleep (no surprises there). They also recommend brain games, using all your senses to help with memory retention (like taking notes), repeating things you want to remember (like putting your keys and wallet and phone in the same place every day), and continuing to learn new things to make your brain work harder. We should all put these practices to work. As long as we can remember to do them. 

Revisionist History “Free Brian Williams” 

https://open.spotify.com/episode/5A6zjgEACEukyNOo0KmSBU

Also available on Apple Podcasts if you have a subscription. 

Fall in Washington Wine Country

Here we are back in our Central Washington wine region on the farewell tour of the 2021 camping season.  It’s a quick trip to meet up with great friends before we winterize the Hideout and put her to bed for the coming frigid season.  It’s been an awesome getaway summer and though we didn’t wander far, we spent half of our summer days in the r.v. somewhere away from home.  We’re so thankful for our home on wheels that affords us the freedom to wander at will. 

I have nothing particularly profound to share or inspiration to provide, but thought you all might enjoy following us on our weekend adventure.  The vineyards are changing color, the harvests are happening, the fall release wines and events are making an appearance.  We’re loving the company of our fun travel companions and making memories.

Please indulge this little photo expose, but hopefully it's a reminder to spend time with great people in places you love as often as you can.  Get out there and make some memories, friends! Cheers!

Oh, the Places You'll Go

I live vicariously through people who make it a priority to travel. I love seeing photos and hearing about their adventures, even if they don’t wander far from home but have found a way to escape from their everyday life to places they love. Some people I know have been all over the world and when I talk to them, I can tell they are adventurous and traveling about and seeing new things really lights them up. Lots of people write travel blogs and I enjoy reading them and seeing their photographic captures of how they make the travel life work. This is not that.

Growing up we didn’t travel a lot because we lived on a working cattle ranch and getting time away wasn’t easy. But we did take a few special trips and they were always memorable. How in the world we ever packed five of us into a normal four-door car with all our luggage to spend a week away is beyond me now. One year we drove from Montana to Alaska over the Alcan highway. Much of it was a two lane dirt road and we spent what seemed like endless long days driving through Canada till we finally reached Anchorage. Again, I think about three girls crammed in the back seat of a car for numerous days and very few bathroom stops. But somehow that trip was still magical.

I could easily list off lots of places I would love to see and we might even make some of them happen. But there are a couple of special places that we always return to because of how they make us feel when we are there. Part of it may be the people we go with and the treasures we find, but mostly it’s just that they leave us in awe of nature and beauty and give us a feeling of rest and peace. I love going and doing and seeing new things, but the best vacations for me are those where I have time to relax and breathe. 

The Oregon Coast is almost like our home away from home. I left the mountains of Montana to attend university in Eugene, which is not far from the ocean. I met my husband there. When we got married, we honeymooned there. We took nearly annual trips to Cape Meares where friends gave us access to their beach house. Our kids experienced running along the waves, playing in tide pools, searching for shells and agates, and even body surfing in the freezing water. The Pacific Ocean is one of incredible power and beauty. The vistas are awe-inspiring. We still return often and never get tired of walking the beaches and lying in our camper at night listening to the sound of crashing waves. We’re still on the search for the world’s best clam chowder, but Rogue Brewery has the best fish and chips I’ve ever eaten. As soon as we come home from spending time on the Coast, we can’t wait to go back. 

Maui, Hawaii has become our other go-to happy place. It’s still the Pacific Ocean, but calm, warm waters, beaches with sand like sugar, palm trees, balmy breezes and amazing sunsets.  Friends invited us to visit there many years ago and we fell in love with staying right on the beach where we could soak up the sun and jump in the water and walk along the sand with gentle waves cooling our feet. We have watched the sun rise on a dormant volcano, splashed in waterfalls, hiked around lava rock black sand beaches, gotten up close with humpback whales and spinner dolphins, done early morning and sunset cruises. We’ve shared special trips with family and friends and have scrapbooks of memories. Thanks to recent travel restrictions and price increases, it’s been too long since we’ve been there. But soon. 

Where do you always want to return to? We’re chomping at the bit (horse term) to get back to Alberta and British Columbia, check out the Grand Canyon, and tour the northeast states to see the spectacular fall colors. But I have a feeling we will always return to Pacific City, Oregon and Kihei, Maui. We’ve left a little piece of ourselves there that we need to revisit. 

User Not Found

The great Facebook blackout may have reminded us all how much communication we have tied to online sites and social media.  Some of you may not have even noticed that Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger were all dark for a few hours last week because you are far more disciplined than I. I am quite tied to the online world and though at times I take a pause, it’s usually short-lived. Since I started this blog, I depend on social media for promotion and notifications. It’s also how I communicate with close friends and family, even though most all of them have my phone number. It’s an easy way to find out what’s going on in local, national and world news since I don’t watch network television anymore. It’s one of my forms of entertainment as I follow rabbit trails of cute baby animal videos or 81-year-olds learning to ride a skateboard.   

While some of you may believe that social media is the devil’s sandbox, I embrace the positive and negative sides. I advocate for caution, privacy limitations and monitoring, especially for minors. There are scary things out there and they aren’t hard to find. It’s also a huge time-sucker if you let it be (guilty as charged).  However, I have made many friends through the likes of Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, some in faraway parts of the world.  One of those friends in Australia and I exchanged phone numbers recently “just in case” things get crazy in the online world.  We don’t want to permanently lose touch. 

I will not get into a discussion here about theories that we are all being manipulated by powers behind the sites (without question, we are). I also won’t, in this space, entertain thoughts about a giant cataclysmic blackout event being just around the corner (undoubtedly that is highly likely). But a hack that took down several major media sites for several hours makes you think about what we would do if we did have an extended period of time without internet access.

It has been in my lifetime that the worldwide web even came into being.The world scrambled to get onboard and figure out how to use it for good and bad.  And now, in this time frame, it would have been nearly impossible to navigate business, education, purchasing, transportation, and communication during pandemic lockdowns were it not for the awesome gift of the internet (thank you, Al Gore). I think, though, that we need to make sure to see it as a tool, not a way of life. There was a time long ago and far away that our telephones were stuck on a wall and were the only way to talk to someone not in the room, and we had to write actual letters and mail them to people. 

I am not in the business of telling people what choices to make about screen time and dependency on social media. I will not be a Judgy McJudgerson if you want to spend all day working and playing on the web. But maybe it IS time for all of us to think about whether it is a TOOL for us, or whether we are completely dependent on it.  The blackout this week didn’t interfere much with my life (Twitter was very entertaining that day). But it did make me think about how I would handle it if all the major sites were down for days or weeks. What might that look like and how would we all cope? 

None of this keeps me up at night, by the way. At night I’m too busy worrying whether or not I remembered to move the clothes to the dryer or did I pay the invoice from our pest control provider. But it is food for thought. Where do we put our trust and confidence?  What do our relationships look like without an online presence? Could we do what we do in the day to day without our internet ties?

I think I’ll power down and head outside for awhile. Maybe I’ll start a new book with actual pages. I might even use a pen and paper to write my next blog post. Maybe I’ll even phone a friend (probably not). I’m not expecting everyone to jump in on my tiny revolution, but if you want to join me, send me a tweet or IG chat or Messenger message…..oh wait……nevermind. 

Hug a Tree!

Not even I, being a summer girl through and through, can argue with the beauty of fall in the Pacific Northwest.  We definitely experience all the seasons in our Eastern Washington high desert locale.  The deciduous trees and bushes all take on an array of color, from bright yellow to deep crimson and everything in between. 

I have a special affinity for trees of all kinds.  I could never live in a place that doesn’t have them.  Green is my favorite color so all the shades of green that trees bear are my happy place.  I am forever in awe of sunlight hitting the leaves and turning them translucent, glowing bright chartreuse.  I love watching them twist and turn in a summer breeze.  Seeing those first signs of new growth in the spring makes my heart leap for joy.  I appreciate their shade on hot days and I even love seeing the bare branches laced with snow in winter.  I appreciate that they are nest holders for birds, and viewpoints for squirrels that leap from branch to branch. 

Trees themselves are lovely to behold, but I am fascinated by their individual leaves.  If you look closely at leaves, you see a perfect system of veins that allow the chlorophyll to reach the very tips and keep them green.  There are so many leaf shapes on different kinds of trees and even on the same tree, there is variation in size and shape.  In the fall, because of changes in the length of daylight and fluctuation in temperature, the leaves stop their food-making process.  The chlorophyll breaks down, the green color fades to yellow and orange and gives the leaves their fall splendor.  Eventually the life in the leaves also fades away and they “fall” from the branches to the ground.

We’re blessed here in the northwest to witness this cycle of death and new life every year.  As the months pass, there is the opportunity for beginning anew each spring.  Some trees flower first and display an array of beautiful blossoms that quickly come and go.  The new, bright green leaves begin to flourish in the warmer temperatures.  Spring to me always feels fresh and hopeful and a chance to restart.  I always dread the cold, dark winter months, but were it not for them, spring would not be so refreshing and renewing. A very talented friend made this gorgeous stained glass representation of a tree.  I love how the sun enhances all the colors in the individual leaves.  When I look at it, I see seasons and life and hope. Being among trees makes me feel the same.  They are a part of creation that represent growth and new beginnings, steadfastness and durability. 

I’ve had more time this fall to enjoy the colors, the warmth of the sun on these shorter days, and the crisp mornings.  I’m trying hard to embrace the change of seasons more than ever before.  By February I’ll be complaining that spring isn’t coming soon enough, but it always shows up when it’s supposed to.  Embracing the seasons and rhythm of life is a good thing. Right now the leaves may be dying, but spring is coming.  It always does.  The trees tell the story every year without fail.  While this year’s leaves are falling, the trees are already working on the new growth to come. 

Nature gives us the best lessons. We have seasons, too. Whether we live where there are four distinct seasons or not, we all go through cycles of growing and resting and thriving and dying.  But what we can know for sure is that our favorite season always comes around again no matter how long it seems to take.  Spring will be back again in 165 days.  The trees will let us know.   

Imperfectly Perfect

I have a room in our house that was long ago designated “The Craft Room”.  It really is just my space as my husband rarely steps foot in it.  I have creative leanings that require me to be trying, making, inventing, producing bits of art.  For me, there’s something satisfying in imagining something pretty and working at taking it from an idea to an actual finished product.  Craft stores make my heart beat faster; thus the need for a room dedicated to all the treasures I collect in those places. 

I admire people who can draw and paint.  I’m pretty good with stick figures but that’s about as far as that goes.  I’m better at taking paper or fabric and turning them into something.  As part of my former job, I made graphics for promotion purposes and that part of my task list was my favorite.  Using those creative juices was fun and fulfilling.  Writing poetry uses that creative part of my brain as well as I attempt to create a picture from words on a page. 

I also am a bit of a perfectionist which sometimes limits my creativity.  In sewing projects, I abhor ripping out things that didn’t go together quite right.  I’ve been known to throw away a handmade card if I feel something is off.  I think I would have a hard time with pottery as there are so many ways a piece can go south.  I have tried being less critical of my finished projects, but there’s something in my left brain that tends to see the imperfections.  Photography is fun, but far more photos get deleted than saved. 

I have been working on letting go of my perfectionism and trying to see the beauty in things that are not necessarily the way I pictured them.  I’m learning to allow things to be a little left of center.  It’s beginning to dawn on me that not everyone has the same hang ups I do and they see something as beautiful just the way it is.  If a quilt corner is a teeny bit off, at least I don’t put it down and never pick it up again.  That’s progress!

This growth in my own life of being satisfied with less than perfect should also carry over to people.  It’s easy to believe that everyone should think like me or behave in a way that matches my personal integrities.  Not everything is so black and white, right or wrong.  We are all like puzzle pieces with different shapes and colors such that when you look at them individually, they don’t seem to fit.  But when you find where they belong, they contribute to a beautiful mosaic that when you stand back and look, makes perfect sense. 

It makes me think about what God sees when he looks down on all of us.  We look around our world and see a giant chaotic mess, but He sees the beautiful mosaic of the pieces fitting together into the design he intended it to be.  Not to say that we don’t all have work to do, because we do certainly manage to make a mess of things that would be easier to throw out and start over.  And well, God did that, too.  But I have a feeling he doesn’t stress about our imperfections because He sees with perfect vision.  And he knows every single one of us can be redeemed for the good of the finished masterpiece. 

I’m giving myself the freedom to let God be the master designer.  I’m also giving others the freedom to be who they are and still appreciate them for our differences as well as our commonalities.  I’m currently making a quilt for my ten-year-old granddaughter.  She picked out the fabrics and helped with the design.  I might have chosen different patterns or colors, but she loves it the way it is.  And I am beginning to see it come together in a great way that is just perfect for her.  I will not be pointing out the corners that don’t match perfectly because I have a feeling she doesn’t care.  I’m still a work in progress, but I’m getting there! 

Let imperfections be beautiful in your life.  Accept that perfection really isn’t attainable anyway.  Don’t try to cram the wrong puzzle piece into the wrong space, or toss out the creation because something is a bit off.  Every single part of the project has a purpose and a beauty, including you and me, and we fit into the puzzle exactly the way we were designed to.