More Reynolda Photos

(BTW, I'm finding that some of these make great desktop backgrounds. If you see one you'd like, let me know which one and I'll forward it on.)

The Menagerie

Lo and behold: in my work email today, the Revolution Health enewsletter, which proclaims, "It's About Time for Yourself." Would have been more apropos before Saturday (and, in truth, I got it Thursday of last week, but didn't have a chance to look at it), but nonetheless, there are some good points included in this article. Try this one on for size:

When you leave yourself off the priority list, you actually cheat those you love out of the "whole" you. Instead, you bring to relationships "a diminished version of yourself," says psychologist Debra Moore, Ph.D., of Sacramento, CA.

And this one:

But if you take just 15 minutes each day to relax, your body will thank you in many ways, says McKee. You'll lower your blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen consumption.

Read more here.
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As was pointed out to me today, The Harbour (this blog that you're reading right this very second) is 3 years old today. Wanna know how it all began? Start here. Happy reading.

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Been thinking a lot about grief recently, for good reason, as those of you who have to deal with my rants about the unbelievable events that happen in my life are aware. (Bless you.) Thus, I've been doing a bit o' reading, as I'm wont to do, and I find this:

It is not healthy to avoid grief or to deny a major loss for a long period of time. Avoidance of grief may lead to serious physical or emotional problems later in life.

To which, I think, "Yikes. I'd better get cracking." I'd add more here (there's so much more I have to say on this subject), but it goes against The Rules for Blogging.

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Simply: Frozen Thin Mints rock. And I love that the rain smells so sweet right now. Just wish I had a front porch swing so that I could go drink my wine outside, opposed to inside by a window.

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Reynolda Gardens this past Saturday:

Why, Yes, I Did . . .

just wash my hair in the backyard, under the sprinkler. It's summer, I'd been working in the yard for about three hours. I was hot and I was already soaking wet anyway. Wouldn't you?

Happy Memorial Day!

"Me" Day

Today is a "me" day.

Well, maybe it's been a "me" weekend. Friday morning was rough and I finished the day with, get this:
- A massage at Kneaded Energy
- Tiny little shopping spree at New York & Company
- A new 'do, from Carla at Van Davis
- Dinner with my sis at Ichiban
- Drinks with some of her friends at First Street

Saturday was slow. Deb and I went to Father Larry Hunt's memorial mass. He was the priest at Good Shepherd during my adolescence, so he certainly meant a lot to me. So amazing to see the number and variety of people he had an impact on during his life. The two things that just really got me: remembering his garden at the church (he didn't have the space at the rectory) and the bookmarks he gave out for birthdays, anniversaries and graduations at mass. You never got the same one twice. I've got a good collection.

Quiet afternoon and we decided to head up to Summer on Trade to listen to some music, but ended up at the Open Drum Circle that Living Rhythms holds in the Bubbling Well Tea and Tonic Bar/Golden Flower Tai Chi Center. Finally got a seat at a drum and played until the drum circle was over (more than an hour). Deb got a chance to get up and practice her African dance moves to real live music, too. Ended the evening with martinis at Fourth Street and time in the hot tub.

But today-today is a "me" day. I need to find time to be quiet and surround myself with the beautiful day that today is. I've got some "me" work to do soon and I need to prepare for that.

The plants that still need to be planted can wait another day. The grass really doesn't have to be mowed today. Vacuuming can be done when it's dark out and shops are closed.

So, the plan is a picnic lunch at Reynolda Gardens, a bit of reading and journaling out on the lawn, photos of the blooming rose garden (look for pix later), a trip to Sam's, maybe World Market or Kirkland's and maybe Lowe's (because it's a spring weekend and I'm not sure I've passed more than two spring weekends in the last 10 years without going to Lowe's; it's a habit). Then a bit more reading in the hammock with the Ben & Jerry's that's sitting in my fridge. And since I missed church completely this morning, church this evening.

Plan A . . .

was to water the gardens, plant the veggies, do laundry and clean the house. Thanks to my fabulous neighbors, Roxanne, Julie, Linda and Mack, I'm on Plan B: blog, more wine, clean the house, read, ponder (and then decide not to) doing yoga and then bed with the duck, if I have the batteries I think I have. If not, I'll be renewing my Sam's membership this weekend. C'est la vie.

Pizza from Burke Street. Just good.

The weekend holds a memorial service (sad, but true), time at the pool, reading in the hammock and the gardening that I'm still putting off because I'm either (a) too busy or (b) too interested in something else. At least I'll be more interested in gardening than studying!

Next!

Photos from Belize

A palapa at St. George's Caye. (We stayed at Pleasure Island.)

The view from our room at Cahal Pech in Cayo/San Ignacio.

The jaguar at the Belize Zoo.

Sunset on the west side of San Pedro/Ambergris Caye.

A sailboat on the north end of San Pedro/Ambergris Caye.

The High Temple at Lamani. (Yep, I climbed it.)

Synchronicity Strikes Again

There's a theme in my life in the last couple of weeks. It's basically this: Don't accept less than you deserve from the people around you. I'm hearing/reading/seeing it everywhere. And now, Grandma's in on the act, too.

*Sigh.*

It appears the universe really, really, really wants me to get this one. And it is so hard for me to believe that God's timing on this is perfect. But it must be.
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(March 5, 1999)

Our thinking is like a garden that needs to be cultivated. And our talking is even more important. The two go hand-in-hand, and what happens is a direct result of what we have dwelled on for many seasons. It is in our power to make corrections and edge out trouble, little by little, but surely.

Peace,
Tawanka

The Blessing of Love

"Age does not protect you from love. But love, to some extent, protects you from age." —Anais Nin

A loving relationship shelters you from life's ups and downs. Feeling loved and giving love to others creates a buffer between you and the world. Keep your social ties strong as you age for a happy, healthy life.

I can't claim this, but it's really resonating with me today. So count me grateful and this as one of the reasons I'll smile today. Genuinely.

Completely at a Loss for Words

I simply cannot think of an appropriate title for this email from Grandma. *Sigh.*

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(March 1, 1999)

We thought they would last forever - those old ones who taught us, bent us, sweetened our lives. We thought our questions would always go to them and answers would return in familiar voices.

Too many times we did not appreciate their humor, their words that chided us with lessons. Our differences were great, we thought. Our eyes wandered to other things, our voices mingled with strange ones.

And suddenly, like the vapor mists that lift and fade on sun-struck mountain tops, they were gone. We did not see them go. They slipped past the boundaries to joy and rest without limit.

Now the questions hang in mid-air without voices to answer. And the differences fade like the mists but memory persists with genuine humor, genuine love, and we, in turn, convince our young to "Hear me now, my children . . ."

Peace,
Tawanka
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I should hope we can all heed the lesson here. I pray that we do.

(Confidential to my J's: This was hard for me to post. I know it's even harder for you to read. Bless you.)

A Bit o' Belize . . .

Decided on the trip NOT to try to fit everything about the country into one or two blog posts. It just wasn't going to work. So, welcome to A Bit o' Belize. I'll do a series, occasionally, on an observation or such from the trip.

Bit #1: Belize is a developing country. There are about 60 Peace Corps Volunteers in the country right now, all working on projects to help the country out. Alli's two main projects (most PCVs have one or two projects; Alli's got, um, a billion) are an apprenticeship program and developing a program about corals, sea grasses and mangroves for the local schools.

School in Belize is expensive. It's compulsory for children, as it is in the U.S., but parents must pay extra for education as well. Considering that minimum wage is Belize $2.25 an hour (about US $1.12), any expense for compulsory education is difficult for parents.

Consider also that there are no school buses. If the parents are so lucky as to be able to send their child to the school nearest their house and they can afford the school, they may not have to spend money on bus fare. If not, the child has to catch one of the buses of the Belizean (Bel-e-zuhn) bus system. The child only has to pay 1/2 price (Alli, correct me if I'm wrong) for the fare, but with most bus fares being BZ $2 or BZ $3 per trip (depending upon the destination) sending a child to school becomes a very expensive proposition.

Further, children are required to wear school uniforms and every school has a different uniform. I am assuming, although I do not know for sure, that parents also have to purchase the uniforms. The further expense certainly adds to the challenge of surviving in Belize and perhaps explains some of the poverty of the country.

More later . . .