Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Taking Pleasure in the Smallest of Things

The unseasonable warmth of a late winter day allowed me to line dry my bed sheets today. Have you ever inhaled the sweet scent of drying laundry? Mmmmm.....like the violets that bloom nearby. Light fragrance, dampness mingling with warm clean mountain air tinged with fir blossom. The air so delicious I had to follow the path out and wander around.

It is in the simple that being fully present returns to me. I have vision boards of grand plans and ideas. The horizons I aim for. But what about the sea beneath my sails in this moment? I walked into the forest with Mo, the Anatolian Shepherd. I noticed a particular patch of forest where many trees fell this last winter. I sat on one log and watched the lazy flight of small gnats bobbing in the stillness. Mo gnawed on something near my feet that I could not see, the entirety fit into his mouth. He put it down to look after something else. At first it appeared to be some type of fungus, but it was too hard from the sound of his teeth clattering. When I bent over it the form became clear. A Western Pond Turtle pulled so deeply inside the shell i could not see any sign of the head. And the shell must be hard, only the barest scratches from a good five minutes of Mo's jaw work.

I picked up the turtle, reluctant to leave this little haven of peace. But I stepped over downed trees and made my way back towards the pond, turtle in hand. The feel of the feet just barely visible is seductive. I love the scales, the half inch long black nails curving from the feet. The scales are cool, smooth, elegant somehow. As I walked the nose became visible. I plopped her down into the edge of the pond and she sank like a stone. Mo scurried around the surface of the water sniffling madly. I don't know why these turtles navigate land so far from water. A mystery to investigate someday.

I am addicted to sitting in the forest. it has become the place where I give myself permission to be free of all concerns. There are days, like today, when I do not want to leave. I cherish these moments of the simple, when the story falls away.

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