Monthly Archives: February 2012

Day of Rest

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Just got back from a walk/jog with Eric and the boys, and in about 20 minutes I’ll go to my yoga class, so I have just enough time to share these two small stones.

Small Stone: Morning Pages
Eric is gone, hiking with the dogs, so I have the house all to myself. It’s still dark outside, and I sit at my writing desk, in front of my HappyLight, writing my morning pages. The house is so quiet, that the only sounds I hear are the scratching of my pen against the page, the tick of the clock, and my breath.

Small Stone: Dog
Sitting on the couch with the dogs, Sam is sitting up tall, looking down at me. I put my hand on his head and he pushes into it, his forehead pressing into my palm, his eyes closed. He sighs. These few seconds are the why of living with, of loving dogs. All the hard work, the care, the time, the challenges and struggles, are rendered powerless in these small moments.

On this day of rest, I wish you similar such moments of quiet, stillness, focus, connection, and love.

Joy Jam

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What were the 3-5 things that gave you joy this week?

1. Well-Fed Woman Retreatshop afterglow: I’ve been basking in this all week. Remembering and daydreaming about it, running into and hanging out with women who were there, hearing their good feedback and receiving their generous appreciation, seeing the glow in them, and thinking about how loved and lucky I am. Hopefully this weekend I’ll finally find time to tell you more about last weekend, because I have so much I want to share.

2. Sitting in the backyard in the sun with the dogs: Yes, it’s muddy back there today because all the snow melted, and Sam and Dexter were putting their dirty, slimy toys on me (neither one really wanted me to actively play or even touch them or the toy, just wanted to be partly in my lap while they played), begging for attention, and not letting me write or relax much, and it was only 45 degrees, but it felt good and made me long for the seasons when we can sit out there for hours at a time. In the same way I choose to go barefoot whenever I can, I’d prefer to be outside.

This is how Sam feels about having to come back inside so I could write this post:

You've got to be kidding me, Mom.

3. Cleaning my house: Okay, I know that probably sounds strange, maybe even a little crazy to some of you, but it happens so rarely anymore that it was a joyful thing. The only year since Eric and I’ve been married when I didn’t work and/or wasn’t in school, the first year we were back in Colorado (he got the job here after I’d already been accepted into two graduate programs in Oregon, and it was too late to apply at CSU, so I took a year off), I would clean the bathroom, dust, and water the plants once a week, every week. I cooked and worked out every day. My house was clean, and I was well rested and fit. Sometimes, I really miss that.

4. Preparing a WILD writing session: My writing group is coming over today. I’m hosting, which means opening my home, providing food and drink, and planning the writing we’ll do for the three hours we spend together. I’ve had bad experiences with writing groups in the past (too much building up and tearing down of egos), but I love, love, love this group of women.

5. My home: As I cleaned it this morning, I was reminded how much I love this place. It’s small and needs lots of work still, but that only makes me love it even more.