No Means No
April 17, 2009 — Stories, Experiences, & Memories, The Lighter Side

[This was] an experience with my younger daughter when she was 4.

We had gone on a picnic/gooseberry picking expedition. I showed her the plants, where they live, the difference twixt ripe and unripe berries, and I told her the two most important things to remember:

  1. Be sure to ask the plant’s permission before picking, and say thank you.
  2. Always leave some berries for other hungry critters.

I then handed her a bucket and sent her off to find her own patch. I watched her skip happily across the little clearing to the woods’ edge, and turned my attention to whichever other child needed it.

A few minutes later, I saw her return — stomping her feet, angrily swinging her empty bucket, a thundercloud scowl on her face. She slammed her bucket onto the ground and threw herself down after it.

I asked her what happened, and she said, through gritted teeth, “I asked it if I could have some berries and it said no.”

Posted at 12:14 pm —

 

Leaping into the Unknown
April 14, 2009 — Magic & Spirituality, Stories, Experiences, & Memories, Living in the World, The Business of Living, Health, The Path of Oriental Medicine

It’s not too often that I find myself in an adventure of my own. Now I’ve got nearly more than I can safely handle.

It’s hard to describe how I feel here in Oregon. Simply, it feels like life is painted with a more luscious palette. Colors are brighter and more varied. I like the close mixture of sunshine and rain, for all that everyone who heard of our final destination warned us off because of the rain. I like the neighbors and their earthiness. I like the intimacy of our locale, and the closeness of the woods. I can feel Spirit here.

But that’s not the adventure, only the backdrop.

The primary long-term task post-graduation has always been to become a financially sustainable family. Though this is old hat for many people, it’s one of my weakest areas. I’ve focused on internal development and academic success for most of my life; probably becoming a professor would have been better suited to my introspective tendencies, if I hadn’t also wanted a taste of the rough-and-tumble real world. So now I pay the price, as my security blanket is ripped away from me and the tornado flings me far from Kansas and into a strange land where I know no one and have to start anew.

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Posted at 11:52 pm —

 

Reset
April 12, 2009 — Health, Qi

It’s time to start building power.

The physical is the basis. I rode my bike today for the first time in a long time. Haven’t lived in a place friendly enough for it in quite a while so it was stimulating and also somewhat foreign.

Then stopped off at a friend’s and played a little soccer with him and his daughter. They kicked our butts and I realized how out of shape I feel.

Tonight I started training in a system of nei gong that will, hopefully, charge me up to super-power. I’ll keep you posted.

Posted at 1:49 am —

 

Identity Crisis
April 9, 2009 — Living in the World, Magic & Spirituality, News & Updates, Stories, Experiences, & Memories

Things are shifting dramatically.

I left Florida for good at the end of February. We traveled, stayed in New Mexico for awhile, got massages, soaked in outdoor natural hot springs while it was snowing. We visited friends and family in many states.

Now we’ve arrived in Oregon, and I’m afraid I’ve reached a strange stopping point in this narrative of my life.

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Posted at 12:44 am —

 

 

 

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