New Space

Moving to WordPress. Won't you join me? New blog space: here.

What's your message?

We saw a coyote by the road, near Tiger Lake this morning. I saw a coyote in the exact same spot coming home, late, on Saturday night. Do you think it's a sign of something? Some kind of message? In my Spirits of the Earth book it says, "Coyote is one of the most ancient symbols for most Native tribes. He is often portrayed as either the creator or the trickster. He is full of magic, special powers, and teachings. We learn from the lessons that Coyote gives us about the mistakes and/or accomplishments he has made in life. Depending upon the circumstances or situation in your life, the sign of Coyote is usually a good sign, but beware, it can also be misleading."

Sometimes I'll be inside the house and I catch the sound of coyotes through the window. It's almost always dark outside when I hear them. I like to step outside, into the darkness. And there, in the perfect darkness, I stand as still as possible and let every part of myself LISTEN to the coyotes. Their yips and yowls are full of energy, that much I know. Whether or not they are good sign, or bad, you can't deny that energy.

I can't help but wonder, will I see a coyote in that place along side the road again? And if so, what will I do? What can I do? Is it a sign for me, or for someone else? Or is it just a coyote along side the road?

A taste of Alaska

Alaska was good to me. Cruising was good to me. I've given much thought to traveling via cruise. I'm still skeptical, but, you know what? It was fun. And, a couple weeks past arriving home I'm left with fond memories and missing this-and-that.

Most importantly, going on an Alaskan cruise gave me the experience of visiting Alaska. I cannot fathom not returning, it felt like home up there.

And, the past few days I've been mulling over the feelings of connection to the Inside Passage. Journeying into and through the Inside Passage is not a completely foreign idea to me. I've thoroughly enjoyed various reads of such accounts of adventure.

Standing on the cruise ship everything inside of me felt energized and excited seeing island upon island meeting with the waters inside the Passage. How can one see those islands, see the rugged seashores, and not want to explore further?

I think I likely left part of myself up there, along those rocky sea swept shorelines.

And that feels okay.

If nothing else it gives me fuel to dream about my return to those magical waters.

Sections of the coast

While waiting for Dom to pick me up from work the other day, I sat studying a map of Olympic National Park. My gaze fell specifically to sections of the coast. It occurred to me I'm quite close to completion of hiking the entirety of the ONP sections of the Washington Coast.

I have four sections left, and, if you want to get technical, I suppose I would need to ford the Ozette River to really complete the whole coast.

Either way, sections left include:
+Point of the Arches to Seafield Creek
+Yellow Banks to Norwegian Memorial
+Chilean Memorial to Hole-in-the-Wall
+Toleak Point to Jefferson Cove

Undoubtedly it seems the most difficult section left is likely the bulk of the southern coast, Toleak to Jefferson. Earlier this year my dad and I made attempt of Oil City to Mosquito Creek. Many people hike this section of the coast (Oil City to La Push is quite popular). For various reasons, this will likely be the hardest section for me to complete.

I wonder, shall I make completion a goal? In the next year? Or can I knock of at least three of these sections in the coming winter?

Should I finish with the southern section? Or would another section lend itself better to such a memory?

And, all the while I can't help but think hiking the entire coast as a thru hike would be pretty awesome too. Such daydreams do fill my mind.

Books

Beluga Cafe, by Jim Nollman, was a good read. I would recommend.

And, although I'm not yet done, I would also recommend Yvon Chouinard's Let My People Go Surfing.

Good words, good reads.

Running

This morning there were sheriffs radaring in the speed zones near our house. I had to slow down. Thankfully, I wasn't going more than 5-10 over the speed limit. As we rounded a particularly sharp corner I saw a black truck come swerving up behind us, nearly out of control. I thought, "He must be running from the cops." And, he was. He proceeded to pass me, and speed off. Behind me, lights from a sheriff. I pulled over. The sheriff sped by. A chase.

A half mile or so further, we came upon the sheriff with his gun drawn. The guy, hands behind his head, on his knees, facing away from the cop. Man, this kind of stuff really does happen. Right here. Right now.

I wonder why he was running? I couldn't help but think he must be running from something more severe than speeding ticket. But who knows. We all run in our lives, from time to time, don't we? Not necessarily from the law, but maybe from fear, from other people, from uncomfortable situations - from a wide variety of things. I know I have run from time to time. I know I still run from time to time. Fear is such a powerful motivator, possibly a motivator of debilitation?

Yet, just like we witnessed this morning, eventually the chase will likely end. The running must stop. The road, in one way or another, becomes too curvy, too narrow or lacks any viable escape. And so, we do stop. We come face to face with what we fear, with the reality of consequences, or possibly with the truth we knew all along.

. . .

I can't help but think, maybe instead of running from, we should be running for? If we can realize we are running, maybe there is power in that very awareness to change the cycle from a negative to a positive. If we can't solve everything today (if we must keep running), and if we manage to avoid fate coming in an and making us stop (like a sheriff pulling us over), what if we start running for? For freedom, for happiness, for life. Run towards good, instead of away from bad. Or is that just a silly thought?

I don't know. I'm reminded of Yann Martel's Life of Pi. If we have to chose, we might as well chose the positive and hopeful, right?

You have the map you need

"Take control of your decisions today, Kelsie. People might often like to tell you what direction to take and what choice is best for you, but ultimately, you are the person who knows best. Stop looking to others for guidance about your life and start finding those solutions within yourself. You already know the answer. You have the map you need tucked away in your back pocket. Pull it out and use it."

When did horoscopes get so smart?