.....sand castles and twizzlers

Yogis,
I was only 26 years old the first time I went. With a four-year-old son in tow and another nestled inside me, I fell in love with the Outer Banks. A few hours ago, I arrived home from my thirty first visit. Thirty one consecutive end of July’s spent on the same block and same stretch of beach, with the same crowd of friends.

This year my youngest son is 26. There is nothing like an annual tradition to view time through.

For the first many years there was always one of us pregnant or nursing an infant under the shade of an umbrella. Followed then by summers filled with toddlers, boogie boards, giant sand castles and twizzlers. Trips to urgent care sprinkled in and searching for ghost crabs on the beach at night. During those years our ‘adult’ cocktail party, a single break away from the kids, brought out the teenager in all of us….which we paid for dearly early the next morning.

Years become a blur and suddenly the toddlers are teenagers and we are now the ones nervously keeping tabs on them and the beer refrigerator, kept awake by their card games, music and late night bowls of cereal. Only truly resting when we hear them close their bedroom doors. Informing them that they are now responsible for making their own sandwiches and carrying their own chairs.

This year there were six of the sweetest little girls in our circle, daughters of some of those very same teenagers, building sand castles and eating sand covered twizzlers. Three more babies will enter the world and our group by the time we return. The ‘kid’ picture taking on a new meaning. Watching others doing what we ourselves have done and wondering where the time has gone.

The wild shrubbery has grown taller on the street. So much so that our view of the ocean between the houses in front of us is partially blocked. The bird sanctuary land next to our street where the boys played and deer wandered is now filled with 6 bedroom homes. The dunes continue their skyward growth and every couple of years new taller steps get built directly above the old ones.

Yet some things have not been touched by time. The pulsating drone of the cicadas which fills the hot air as we arrive. Pelicans flying in formation over our heads. Incredible skies and seemingly infinite stars. Our laughter.

As I pulled out of the neighborhood and onto route 12 to head home in the quiet of the early morning the rising sun shone into the car over my left shoulder. For a split second I felt the exact same way I have every single year at that moment when I make the turn. Yes, it has been 31 years but there is that part of me that also remains untouched by time. The part that has witnessed this inevitable yet beautiful passage of time.

I still eat twizzlers,
SARAH

......my 'awe inspiring' lenses

Yogis,

Good morning sun!  Good morning new day! I blink my eyes stretching my arms overhead. As I swing my legs around and plant my feet on the floor it begins. A day unlike any other. A day filled with unlimited possibilities.

When I approach life this way, the world opens its arms to me and pulls me in for a deep embrace. During the times that I forget however, life begins to become ho hum.  I occasionally need to remind myself that each and every day is unique and can be approached one of two ways.

There is the businesslike approach which views the day as a series of ‘to dos’. Leaping from bed, putting one’s head down and steaming forward through the challenges, checking off what has gotten done. At night looking back at the day and measuring its success by what was accomplished or how much was earned…..or simply that one made it through.

Then there is the opposite. Rubbing the sleep from the eyes and being thrilled by the huge open space of sixteen hours lying ahead in which anything can happen. Moving forward through what must get done, but with the curiosity of a child. Open for the new sensations, messages and synchronicities which are naturally drawn toward those who live life this way. Lying in bed at night amazed by the many small moments of magic which had appeared.  

Both take you through the exact same day but wearing a different set of lenses. I prefer to wear my ‘Awe Inspiring’ ones.

Good morning Monday! I said this week as I woke. Later that night as I lay listening to the song of the summer night bugs (which are my sleep aid) I reviewed my day. While weeding the garden I unearthed a vividly marked frog. She hopped nearby and sat for the next 20 minutes while I worked and sang her a lullaby. A blue dragonfly landed and patiently allowed me to photograph her until I got the perfect shot. Baby birds chirped to be fed and as I walked Phoebe that night the nearly full moon looked almost too perfect, as if it had been painted on the darkening sky.

Each day offering me unexpected gifts. Another feather on my path. A particularly breathtaking visit to the creek. Chanting with my students. Picking my first ripe tomato from the garden.

Learning that a type of heartbeat is being discovered in trees (although I already knew that). Herons soaring overhead while I run at daybreak. The intense wave of gratitude I feel at the end of my own practice. Peaches. A summer thunderstorm.

If your ‘awe inspiring’ glasses have gotten lost in the bedside table, take them out and wipe them clean. Tomorrow be sure to put them on and step out with an open heart and mind and wait to be amazed. The universe loves your attention and will draw close……

I can’t wait to see what comes tomorrow,
SARAH

......simple

It's the simple things in life that are the most extraordinary.     ~Paulo Coelho

 Yogis,

I am happy to report that I did indeed do just fine with the clothes that made it into my carry-on bag. The shoes were comfortable and the boots were cute. I was quite proud of myself for doing something I had always said I couldn’t do. In fact, I found the limited choice of outfits I had made dressing for the day simple.

I loved Ireland! This shouldn’t have come as any surprise to me since green is my favorite color. Everywhere you look – shades of green – dotted by the white of sheep. Clean, lush, natural and moist. Spectacular scenery, but the word that most came to me during my week stay was ‘simple’.

Life there appeared much simpler. Uncomplicated. From the people, to the roads, to the weather.

Each time an innkeeper asked where we were headed, the first words out of their mouth were ‘Take your time….there’s no rush’. How refreshing. When is the last time anyone here has suggested that?

They have very few rules. Arriving at the Cliffs of Moher where the edges tower hundreds of feet above the Atlantic Ocean, unlike the US, there are no signs or fences or guards with a list of ten rules and warnings to stay back from the edge (as if we don’t realize that we can fall to our death). Everyone chooses what distance feels safe to them and respects it.  

In stores the choices are simpler. In a town shop there was one small shelf of shampoos. You simply pick one. When I go to Target and enter the shampoo aisle I get sucked into a vortex and emerge 15 minutes later. Even shampoo here has become complicated.

Most highways are only 4 lanes, the houses are modest and absolutely adorable and when you buy tickets for something, they rarely actually even take them from you. There is a certain level of trust that you are doing what you say you are doing. In fact the only policemen I saw were the ones directing traffic for the Irish Open golf tournament.

In the pubs people want to talk. In the rooms you open your windows to sleep. A hearty breakfast sets you up for your day where you aren’t hungry until late afternoon. And the untreated, un-mowed natural flora along the sides of the roads is spectacular. Flowers are very happy there. The cows and sheep grazing all day in the large open fields should be glad they are Irish.

Which brings me back to green. When I returned I realized just how surrounded I am by green on this property and how being at my home is so grounding for me and many others. When I am here and look out, life can seem simple. I am so grateful.

Green offers us simplicity. Is that their secret? If so, we need to do a much better job protecting ours…….

Yearning for simple,
SARAH