Sunday, August 11, 2019

I just sat down. I danced this morning :-), walked the dog and picked up windfall apples in the park, a bunch of them. I also picked 6 cups of blackberries.

Then-more blackberry jam, apple sauce and a blackberry apple pie.

And there are more apples in the fridge, for another day, lordy.

I intend to take a shower today as I sweated mightily at dance but why?

The kitchen counter is stacked with jars of jam and sauce. The dish washer is running.

My body is so sore, my bones are sore. I could lie down and not get up until tomorrow but there will be women here in a bit to meditate together.

I listened to a TED talk about joy and play. I dance and I just started a tai chi class (!). Three days a week, two of those days outside in the beautiful Kubota gardens


http://www.kubotagarden.org/about-us/history/

The gardener was interned during WWII but returned to the garden and continued his work.

The other students are mostly older folks. The teacher calls out the moves, " white crane spreads its wings' and 'parts the horse's manes" while I do my best to follow along. The classes are free or $2, so sweet.

Today is  Eid al-Adha and down the street from my house, the park and the streets were overflowing with Muslims, the men and women in long flowing robes, little children running around. I worried, to see them all together but there were no incidents. Thursday a young woman confronted the landlord for the building where ICE is located in Seattle.

I'm making a pie and jam. I give jam away to my neighbors. I worry about my non English speaking neighbors. Their son assures me they are safe and citizens. They are old and grandparents.

Edward Espe Brown is my new hero. And he will be here in September. You bet I'll go see him.

https://www.audiodharma.org/teacher/27/

Go ahead, give him a listen. He laughs all through his talk. That's where I want to go, laughing at myself in the most loving way.

The pie smells done. I better go check.


4 comments:

Elizabeth said...

What a beautiful, intensely visual post. Thank you for writing it --

Sabine said...

The Tassajara Bread Book sits on my kitchen shelf, it's the sixth kitchen since we got it as a present in the early 1980s, and it's covered in smudges as it should be.

For a while we also had his cookery book and I cherished the bit about how tasty burnt greens can be. Someone walked out with that book tucked into a backpack.

Enjoy the t'ai chi.

Ms. Moon said...

You are a shining glorious light in this world. I love you, Beth.

37paddington said...

your spirit is part of the healing force deployed in these times. i worry about your neighbors too. i worry. my mother used to say if you pray don't worry, if you worry, dont pray. so i pray. i pray the good fairies are listening.