When Kindred Spirits Meet

I had placed my little elephant on the concrete to take a pic and this little boy made a beeline for it. His mom yelled, “Stop, that’s not yours. Don’t touch it!” I looked up and saw him. And his little dinosaurs, and his little brother, who’d all come to the plaza to play in the fountain.

“Here you go. Can my elephant meet your dinosaur? You can hold him but I need to have him back….Can I take your picture?”

The encounter didn’t last long. He handed back the elephant, reluctantly. I kept taking pics. And moved on.

So, I’m on my free-range road trip visiting lots of people and places, and taking along my micro-elephants to focus my eye on the smallest meaningful moments and metaphors. These little guys (boy, his dinosaur, and my ellie) remind me how the littlest things can connect people, if we have the courage to stop and relate.

This morning, days later, I’m wondering if I shouldn’t have been more generous and given the elephant to him. Note to self, perhaps I should carry extra elephants with me at all times.

P.S. Just noticed something. Look at the last pic and reflection…do you see the other elephant face? What is that!?

#connecting #micromoments #elephantlove #freerangeroadtrip #couragewaylife #relate #reframegame

Going on a hunt for the elusive West Seattle sand crab…

GreetingsGreetings, viewers (said in a whisper). Thanks for tuning in to our show.
Today we’re going to take you on an adventure into the driftwood caves
of West Seattle  in search of the elusive sand crab.
I’m in costume so that when we find one, it won’t be startled.
And my producer and I thought it was really just more fun.

Driftwood cave spelunkingFollow me and my camera crew as we enter this old log.

Deeper still into the driftwoodDo you see that mist? Legend has it that the older driftwood caves
exhale a vapor rich in iodine, which these sand-crabs need for breeding.

Getting darkerIt’s getting colder as we go deeper. Do you hear the crab’s melodic whistle?
It’s very faint, but those of us with trained hearing know what to listen for.

Squeeze around this bendWe have to squeeze sideways through this cave to get into the next room.
We’re getting closer. I can feel it.

Almost there...the last cave roomQuiet now. We’re almost there.
Dave, are you getting this on camera?
Here, shine your light over here!

Found one!We found one!

And there you have it!There you have it, folks! We have to cut to commercial now,
but I’m going to sit and chat with our new friend awhile.

We hope you enjoyed today’s show.
See you next week as we explore the…

One who walked the logs before me left a sign…

Spiral to center

One who walked the logs
before me
left a sign
saying
move inward
inward
and in
deeper
still
within
then
outward
again.

High tide calmP.S. I marvel that today’s high tide is so calm and wonder at the metaphor.

 P.P.S.  This one who walks on logs throws logs for labradors who love them:

One who walks the logs

Ocean loving labrador

Happy water doghappy water dog!

My soul showed up at low tide

My soul showed up at low tidePerhaps it’s only when you feel deserted by the ocean,
as if the water receded along with your hopes,
and even the moon seems gone…

Reflections of a soul

that your soul shows up with a story,
as upside down as it seems.
Find brimful meaning and truth
while the tidepool steeps her saltwater tears.

Her head in the clouds of low tideSoul wonders
which view you might choose.
“Girl, put your head in the clouds.”

In awe of the textures of New Years Day in the forest

simply random snapshots of New Years Day in the woods of Lincoln Park…
tree-communing-NewYearsDay2013communing with trees

stairs-to-newyears

composting autumn on the 138th step

stairs-closeup

in-awe-of-algae-texturesawed by so many layers of life in these woods

awesome-olympicsa posterized view over Puget Sound