“spirtually and passionately alive”
Yesterday, Bob treated me to both lunch and dinner… and salsa lessons in between. First, homemade spinach ravioli at Andre’s Confiserie Suisse complete with cinnamon tea, cream filled cake covered in marzipan and fine coffee. Wow. Then salsa lessons… we got vid of a cool dance sequence for women… so I’ll be able to practice! Yay! Then, we split butter chicken and garlic naan at a local Indian restaurant Korma Sutra. ¡Mmmmm… que rico!
Afterward, back to his house just so he can sew up patches on my fraying yet beloved backpack. He reinforces torn straps and busting seams. He tosses a camelback type water carrier, a first aid kit and wind/dust resistant goggles into the deal. He even makes a quick ¡Que Rico! patch and gives me his signature patch of two bare footprints. More fitting for this next adventure than he could know. I now love my trusty little backpack even more… Thank you Bob.
Learned still yet more about the random buisness ventures Bob has been involved with, including selling these satellite receiver box thingies. I can’t keep up with it all. He’s a total jack of all trades!
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I catch up with Karla and Ohad a bit online. Both say things that touch me deeply… both in their own way. Two special souls from my experience in Guatemala whom I miss so much.
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Final frenzy of “too much to do” before I board the bus Friday. Trying to wrap up all my digital “to-dos” so I can finally start packing. I’ve already connected with so many special people who are all a part of this grand adventure. So many kindred spirits will be coming together. I can’t explain my excitement to meet these souls, who for some reason of magical mystery, are being drawn together in the remote canyons of the Sierra Tarahumara. There is something going on here. Many thanks to all… simply for welcoming me into the cause.
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I love to share it all… so much… so quick. Whereas he… he guards and protects. At first, I thought I had a right to know. But, now I see, that it was his right to share with me… when he felt he could trust. I see that. I grant that. Still, his order was a bit scrambled. Some things should have been shared before others. If one needed to wait… then it all needed to wait. So he’s human… so am I. He misses me… and I miss him. I’ve learned so much already… just from knowing him, listening to him, sharing with him. Thanks Fer.
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Dad brings me mail. Strange… I don’t get mail here. Then I remember, my friend Alex said he was sending something my way: a special recipe for pumpkin bread. Something he remembers that I said I love. Also, two cds of a PBS series. The National Parks: America’s Best Idea. Alex and I both have objectives of visiting the magnificent national parks we have yet to explore here in the U.S. A Nat Geo calendar featuring national parks was a much loved and appreciated gift from Kathy. A gift that recognizes riches that I cherish: nature, raw beauty and capturing it all through photography. In my cover letters I like to reference national parks:
One article from Popular Photography says it most explicitly: Saving the World One Photo at a Time by Jay Mallin. In the article he writes:
“It can be a pretty decent hobby and a reasonably rewarding career. But photography has a remarkable ability to be more than that – to be a force that moves people.”
To be a force that moves people. That is not just what I aspire to be, but what I am determined to be… I am determined to echo the momentous influence of those distinguished photographers that Mallin refers to in his article… Photographers like William Henry Jackson whose landscapes Mallin highlights as helping “spark the creation of the world’s first national park, Yellowstone.” I want to have such a sustainable impact – and I want that impact to directly affect the people of this world who are most in need.
Yeah. Alex did good. A thoughtful gift that certainly humbles me. Thank you Alex.
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Both Kathy and Dad share in my excitement for my upcoming ventures in their own ways. Means more than I can say. Thank you both.
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Aunt Elaine and Aunt Diane share anecdotes from the adorable antics of my little cousins by email. The little morsels of their lives make me chuckle. Thanks for sharing!
Then, Aunt Elaine shares a blog: Kisses from Katie. Her testimony is incredible. A young woman leaves everything… even true love… to stay in Uganda and adopt ten children… as a single mom. Wow. Trust me, you want to click that link.
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Reflecting upon all of the above… I simply have to marvel… at all the wonderful people God brings into my life. Thank YOU.
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Sleeping on the rocks, bathed in the moonlight. The mountain resting just before me in the darkness. The rapids lulling me to sleep.
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You have a perfect smile.
— , Sandbank
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