Life is good

Paradise

So...I haven't been blogging and I haven't completely disappeared. What's been going on? Not to worry, I've just been busy lately. The last couple of weeks have been interesting. I've been spending a lot of time recently in self-reflection. For my birthday, I was given several sets of cards from various people, including The Complete Tarot Kit. This week, I have gotten up early, spent time by myself reading and writing, and have been practicing doing a three-card spread to become more familiar with the cards. The more time I spend reading cards, the more interested I am in Tarot. In the past week, the time I've had for myself to read, write, and exercise has been incredibly good for me and for my state of mind.

I have been stressed about my paper, because it is such a personal endeavor. It has been the last thing that I have wanted to do. I feel differently now. I feel like ideas are percolating in the background and I am in a good space to work on it. I believe that I needed to step back for a while and spend time on myself before I could put my time, energy, and heart into the paper.

I had intended to work on it yesterday, but B. and I decided to go to Paradise on Mt. Rainier, as we'd never been there together. We left kind of late and started hiking around 3 pm. B. chose a route that went by Reflection Lakes and then up along the Skyline Trail before going to Paradise. It was late; I was cranky; and I wanted to see the wildflowers at Paradise. I didn't think going on a 4-hour hike that was in the opposite direction of Paradise was such a great idea.

One of the things that I pride myself on is that although I hate to do it, I can admit when I am wrong. After B. prodded me to stop worrying and have a little fun, I chose to look on the bright side.

The hike was absolutely beautiful. In fact, I had the best time ever. I had my cranky moments, but overall it was an incredible day. I fell even more in love with B. It was so good for us. Good for me, too, because it was good to get some exercise. We ended up hiking between 7 and 8 miles. And the timing was perfect. We got back to the car at 7:30, just after it had started to cool down.

So, the hike took less time than I thought and we were able to stop at the visitor center before hiking back to the car to get something to eat. We got there just as the doors were being locked, but someone let us in and we shared a burger and a cup of soup. Lucky for us. :)

What a great day!

Open Sailing

B. and I both passed the our sailing test and received our open sailing cards today. We had a different instructor than we had last week and I have to say that our teacher this week is much nicer—and a much better teacher. Despite the weather and the relatively light winds, it was still fun. In addition to a written test, we had to do both a capsize and a turtle recovery in open water and successfully rescue a man overboard (or life jacket in this case), which involved using all of the technical skills we learned in the class.

I thought B. would pass, but I had doubts as to whether I would after getting hit very hard in the head last week by the boom. I can’t say that I feel confident about sailing per say. But after what we did today, I do think that I am prepared for what could happen and that makes making mistakes seem less intimidating. I look forward to a nice day when the sun is out and there are better winds. We can take the boats out from Mt. Baker anytime there is a class—as long as we stay between I-90 and Seward Park.

Lying on the Couch

I just finished Lying on the Couch and really enjoyed it. In some ways it was a good psychology review for the oral exams later this year. As a novel, I can't say it is the best piece of literature I've ever read, but because it has been so long since I read any fiction, I found it light and entertaining and was disappointed when the story came to an end.

Asking for help

Today, in my group supervision session one of my favorite associates pulled me aside when we were finished and asked me if I ever find it difficult to ask others for help, especially when it means asking them to go out of their way. It was amusing, and I got the point.

I loaned someone my car today, forgetting that B. had agreed to help my brother out on a large work project. I just assumed I would take B.'s car to my internship--no problem. But he needed his car to drive to Sumner. So, I had B. drop me off on the way to meet my brother. But because it was so early, I had him drop me off at a Starbucks that was around 10 min. away. I did not count on it pouring though and by the time I walked to the office, I was soaking wet. :(

Now I'm sort of stuck here and have clients late into the evening. What's worse is that of all the days possible, my cell phone died and I don't have my charger with me.

I could be really frustrated--or I could look at this as an opportunity to discover how resourceful I can be, learn to have more compassion for others who have to take three buses and spend hours every day commuting, or maybe I could seize the opportunity and ask for help. So far,I'm thinking one and two seem like brilliant ideas.

And I'm pretty happy that I can at least recognize that those are easier options for me. :)

The bitter end

Today was the first day of our sailing class. It was really a lot of fun, although we didn't get to actually sail. Mostly, we practiced how to capsize and recover a boat from both captain and crew member positions. We also learned a lot of sailing vocabulary and how to tie all kinds of knots, including the one pictured here--the bowline. The only problem is that the class is 6 hours long--in the sun. It goes from 11-5, during the hottest period of the day. I'm doing a bit better now, but am still feeling the effects of heat exhaustion--dizziness, nausea, headache, etc. After class, we stopped at Mioposto and got something to eat, which helped a lot.

Next week, I'll just have to get in the water and cool off more and drink lots and lots of water.

Let's go sailing!

B. and I signed up to take sailing classes at the Mt. Baker Rowing and Sailing Center. I can't wait. We had to take a float test today at Pritchard Beach, which involved treading water for 10 minutes in long sleeved shirts and pants and then putting a PDF on in the water (it ended up being more like 15 minutes of treading water, because the life guard who was supposed to be timing the test got a little distracted). The water is getting warmer and so it was actually kind of fun to get wet and swim around.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July!

Today we went to the Wooden Boat Festival on the edge of Lake Union. We stopped by yesterday on a whim and decided to come back today, as volunteers were taking people out for afternoon sails. Unfortunately, we weren't among the lucky. However, we rented a small rowboat and paddled around for a while. Although it was fun, the rowboat was really hard to control, especially with all of the boats on the water and the already drunken crowds. There was a quick and daring sailboat contest happening when we were out and one of the boats in the contest started to sink right in front of us. After watching several rescues and police men being far too lienient with young sorority girls without thier life jackets, we headed in and stopped for drinks at the Pewter Pig Pub.

In the evening, we sat by the lake and watched the fireworks. It was a beautiful day!

One Breath at a Time

For several months, I've been searching for a book a classmate suggested--One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps. After asking about it in a dozen bookstores and never going a step further and ordering it, I finally found a store that had it in stock today and picked up a copy. I spent a couple of hours by the lake reading.

I don't know if I have written about 'library angels' before, but there are times when a book so perfectly chosen for your present situation appears in your life as if by magic. One Breath at a Time is such a book for me. I can see not getting a lot done in the next couple of days and staying up late at night to finish it. The thing is, I'm not reading it to help me with relationships or work through unresolved issues from my childhood. I'm reading it for myself, for my own recovery.

I went to my second Al-Anon meeting last week, and found so many people I could relate to. Compared to the first meeting I went to, I heard a lot of stories of health, stories of happiness. One of the things that impressed me most was that no one complained of their partner's or loved one's drinking. It was all about people's personal journeys.

You're Right Where You Need to Be

A dear friend read this to the first year class before their assessments. It really touched me and so I wanted to share it here.

It's from Journey of the Heart: Daily Meditations on the Path to Freeing Your Soul by Melody Beattie.

June 21

You're Right Where You Need to Be

You're right where you need to be - on your path, guided, in just the right place for you today.
Many times on my journey I stopped short, convinced I would never find the place I was trying to find, only to discover that it was right in front of me all the time. I had gone there instinctively. Gone right where I needed to go, right where I was heading.
There is a part of us that knows where we need to be and understands where we really want to go. There's a place in us that has the map, even if our eyes and conscious mind can't see it, can't figure it out, or aren't certain it's there. If you're spinning in circles, feeling lost and confused, trying to figure out where you need to be and not all that certain where you're going, stop. Breathe deeply. Look around.
You're right where you need to be. Maybe you've been there all along.

Gratitude

I love that when I slip, or when I try to hide from the world, there are so many people around to catch me and help me back up.

Like my dad, who knows when I'm just busy--and when something is wrong, because I don't answer my phone.
Or friends that notice I have not written anything in weeks and send me messages asking if I'm all right.
And others who take me out to lunch, or walk with me, or read my Tarot cards, or just sit with me and tell me that I'm loved.

I am very grateful to have all of you in my life.