Monday, July 23, 2007

A Morning Walk in the Hills of Ashland

At 10:00 it was already well into the 80's, so we took our hour-long walk then, and the rest of the day will be spent moving slowly (or not at all) in the shade... or dipping occasionally in the pool.

The poison oak is everywhere and at it's most vicious stage, so we avoided the more woodsy trails.
The manzanita trees, with their peeling bark revealing fresh, raw, red "baby bark" always looks so hopeful to me. If a tree can project hope, this would be the one.

I'm trying to relax; really, I am. But that nagging feeling is back... the feeling that I need to be in touch with something, or know something, or feel something that's just slightly out of reach. As if there's an "ah-ha" moment waiting for me, if only I knew where to look, or weren't so afraid of what I'd find, or didn't cling so tightly to what's known and comfortable. Everything that's felt like "mine" all along, from career to "the rest of life," feels strange and disconnected now, like I need to look at it all again with fresh eyes and an open mind and heart and ask myself what road to take now.

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5 comments:

surfie999@gmail.com said...

the place looks delightful, so use it well. re the ADD.......our 3rd, a boy is a bit that way, but diet was the salvation - avoid red and yellow colourings, flavourings etc. It is about energy and purpose....I am a bit that way - need to get into things! But enjoying the small things is important - a bird singing, the warm sun etc. Go for it!

Goofball said...

can we swap places, pleace??? I'll go have walks in the heat and you can cool off here in Europe in the rain! How about that?

what is a poison oak, by the way??

Carol said...

Poison oak is a vile plant that causes a VERY itchy rash on the skin. I'm crazily allergic to it. (Well, everyone is, but it makes my whole body puff up into welts!)

Carol

Anonymous said...

Wow, Carol, we got poison oak in Ashland about 8-9 years ago. We were walking around the upper rims of town, with play tickets for 2:00 pm in our pockets. We realized we were heading for "late", and took some shortcuts in the Ashland Creek watershed crashing our way down to the Bowmer. We suffered for weeks there after. The stuff just doesn't let go of you.

Enjoy your stay.

Goofball said...

yikes....I am already allergic to too many things...maybe I don't want to swap places then. Could you just send some sun over please?

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