IT IS A GOOD DAY

It is a lovely morning in Florida. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and the air is warm. I am so very grateful for the conditions that allow me to live here. This last week has been an interesting one, as it has held a lot of emotion for me with not a lot provoking that emotion, which I find pretty interesting.

I have come out the other side of it, it seems, no worse for the wear. There were some delightful highs and some darker lows. It caused me to wonder if my body isn't kind of stuck in the winter doldrums of Wisconsin even though I'm away from all of that cold and gray and snow, snow, snow. I suppose that a body doesn't necessarily adapt in one season.

Battling winter depression has been such a saga for me, when I lived in Wisconsin. Then I add to that conditioning the stress of relocation and rebuilding my life, yet again. And I can understand how this week came about.

The last two years have been a bit challenging... no, a lot challenging. The wonderful news is that there are so many people who have made it all so much more bearable and enjoyable, even with the challenges. That's really it then isn't it? That the people in our lives hug us and hold us up to the light even when we don't have the energy or inclination to do it for ourselves. 

I have a great Tribe... an amazing Tribe. All good, kind, generous souls who network with me regularly to bring out the best in me, the best in them, and the best in the world. I am so very fortunate.

Today holds tremendous potential for completion, and generous endings and brilliant beginnings. Right now is the quiet in the morning, when most are still sleeping. The birds are singing and the leaves on the trees are just coming out. It is springtime here. There's a red headed woodpecker creating a drum beat on the hollow branch outside my open door. Although it's still too cool for the lizards to be active, I anticipate the scurying of anoles and chameleons as the day warms up.

Hugs,
Betsy

ON WALKING AND NATURE

Walking and nature - a great combination. Last weekend I truly felt in need of doing something that would touch my soul; that would resonate with my core and bring me back to ground. Sometimes there is a real need in my life to return to base-camp.

Base-camp, for me, is a quiet, contemplative place that is rich with space and grace; with acceptance and love. It is a place that at once feels safe and yet also affords amazing freedom. Nature is that place for me.

My mind and body seem to be stuck in the "winter in Wisconsin" mindset, even as I look out my window, in Florida, at a green expanse of lawn and trees heavy with new foliage and azaleas in bloom. Which really helps me to awake to the importance of mindset in whatever we do.

I have been in a bit of a "blue funk" the last couple of days. Just one of those things. It has been a bit rainy and a bit gray and that might be contributing. So I have been doing more meditation and quiet time, which is tremendously helpful. I will go for a walk today, in the rain and take my camera.

I have been meaning to photograph the road on which we now live. It is absolutely magical in places, like entering into another world. It exists in the city but feels like deep, rural south. A walking photo expedition in the rain, that sounds engaging.

The pictures here are from last weekend's walk through Fort Caroline and the Tumucuan preserve. I discovered it while lost and looking for the bird sanctuary out by Amelia Island. I never did make it to the bird sanctuary, so that's is left to another weekend. But I did discover Fort Caroline and the hiking trails around that area.

There is something lovely about a walk through the woods, the call of birds, the wind in the trees, the sun on my back. Fort Caroline is a delightful marriage of coastal waterway, marsh and rolling wooded hikes. It is a very small part of the 46,000 acre Timucuan preserve - an estuary wetland preserve. 

You know you've been fully immersed in what you are doing when you realize, after arriving home, that you are covered in a fine powdered dirt that has blackened your sneakers and socks and left your face streaked with gray.

I suppose it's like a child coming in from playing and the surprise on their face when their mother exclaims, "Oh! You are filthy!" Funny, but I reluctantly washed the grime away, as I reveled once more in how it felt getting it there.

If I had a day that I could give you
Id give to you a day just like today
If I had a song that I could sing for you

Id sing a song to make you feel this way

Hugs
Betsy

CHILLING IN FORIDA

Hey there, friends, family, acquaintances and the just curious. I am chilling in Florida. Out on the deck this AM with a cup of Java that tastes like cinnamon buns and soaking up some sun and a beautiful sunny Sunday morning. Coming from Wisconsin, it is such a treat to listen to the birds in the morning and to smell fresh mowed grass in February. I'm in northern Florida so there are some seasons, but not like in the Frozen Tundra. Winter is marked by a little more rain and some fall like temperatures. It seems funny to say, but I believe Winter here is one of my favorite seasons. 

The beaches are lovely this time of year. You can walk for miles and miles with just enough people out there surfing and flying kites and just enjoying the sand and surf to make it interesting, but not so many to be overwhelming. The surfers are bundled up in their wet suites and seem impervious to the chill of the water as they gather out beyond where the waves break chatting each other up and waiting for their next ride.

You see the most interesting things here. Sometimes it feels like the movie Clock Work Orange doing retirement. There was a woman the other day walking the beach with her raccoon on a leash. A couple of weeks ago there was a highland celebration on the beach and so there were people wandering about with bagpipes, in kilts and some dancing in the streets. 

I have a couple of little tea houses that I've found and love to frequent, both for their vegan earth mother atmosphere and for the neighborhoods where they are located. It is so much fun to drive into a neighborhood and watch as the dress and people and way of being totally changes. I am very fond of this one corner of the word where everyone seems to wear black, right down to their black converse high-tops, and they have lots of tattoos, and usually unruly hair, or no hair and they talk about the most interesting things like art, and politics and philosophy. 

Today I get to Skype with my people in Medellin, Columbia. A couple of delightful expats that I've connected with in creating on-line training.  I love the guys, their energy, their ideas and creativity. I sometimes have to pinch myself to make sure that I'm not dreaming as I get to do what I love, with people that I really like and admire, and make a living at it. I tell you what, life after 60 is getting better and better!

Well, time to put my feet up, have a cup of coffee and enjoy the morning. Wishing all of you the same kind of enjoyable day.

Hugs,
Betsy

Day 64: Connecting in Profound Ways

A child's footprints in the sand...I follow along the same path, and the tiny footprints make me smile as I think about how that little person must have been in awe at the beauty and wonder of St. Andrews Park, in Panama Beach, Florida.  The sun is warm on my shoulders as I walk along the boardwalk that crosses the dunes to the beach.  The cry of seabirds is mixed with the sound of beach goers laughing and playing in the deep blue green water of the Gulf.  This jewel of a preserve, where beauty and wonder abound, invites the tired soul to soak in the Florida sun, on pristine white sand beaches; to wander the park, marveling at the wild life; and to connect with nature and the rhythms of life unfettered my man's dictates and imperatives.  There is something truly liberating about lying down in the sand, at the base of a dune, pressed against the warm sand, sun drenched azure sky overhead, and the ocean's inviting rhythm slowly rocking my mind to a place of relaxation.  There is peace to be found in the natural balance of sea, sand, and sky.  As complex as the human condition can be, nature provides a delightful counterpoint.  Spending time immersed in the rhythms of St. Andrews sparks in me a sense of understanding of Thoreau's need for and connection to Walden Pond.  Human complexities can oftentimes be seen as resonating with the principles found in nature. This park is a moving orchestration of natures best and offers the traveler a myriad of opportunities to connect in more profound ways with self and with the world at large.

Day 35

Having my morning cup of Joe and watching the beach come to life.  The beach umbrellas have been opened...the beach lounges have been softened with pads, the jet skis have been dragged to the water's edge and fun and sun is waiting for the spring breakers and vacationers to wake up to another lovely day in Florida.

Day 33

The Carter Tract was operated as a popular fishing ranch by its owner, Mr. Fitzhugh Carter, in the 1960's and 1970's.  During drought conditions, some of the old cypress boats Mr. Carter built and rented to anglers can be seen exposed on pond banks throughout the area.  The tract was later leased as a private hunting area.  The primary objective of the Carter Tract is the preservation and restoration of the wetlands and surrounding uplands on the property.  This is one of my FAVORITE places to go, when I am in Panama City Beach, Florida.  There is no charge for using the row boats on the lakes and the natural environment is pristine.  A peaceful day, drifting in a boat on the lakes, soaking up the sun with a fishing line in the water makes for an AMAZING experience.

Day 31

Just had am AMAZING adventure at the Seacrest Wolf Preserve in Florida.  Above is a photo of the wolf named Spirit who's story brought tears to my eyes as well as many of the other visitors who came to the center to learn about wolves.  These wolves are not wild in that they are imprinted to humans.  They do live in a pack environment, in large, natural fenced areas.  There is only one strain of wolves that is "native" to the Florida area, the Red Wolf.  There are no pure Red Wolfs left, according to our tour guild, as they cross bred with Coyotes as their population dwindled.  This was a great trip and a unique opportunity to get to know more about this beautiful species.

Day 30

Today dawned cooler in Panama Beach.  That being said, a cold day in Florida is better than winter in Wisconsin!  Today gave me some much needed time to work on my web page.  I am ALMOST ready to publish it, and I am really excited to move into the next stage of developing my path towards realizing my DREAMS!!!  Sometimes you have to let go of things in order to grab hold of the future, and that is where I am headed. 

Day 29



Listening to the Earth Breath  When I left Wisconsin, on my Florida adventure, I was at a pretty low point.  The weather has been challenging with snow, after snow, after snow.  My frustration with my leadership team was palpable.  I may have, inadvertently traded one rut for another.  Saying that I was DEPRESSED would be pretty accurate.  Sooooooooooooo, here I sit, listening to the sounds of the ocean, and the wind; in my shorts, barefoot, JUST BEING.  I'm in the process of healing from a number of gut punches I have taken lately and thinking about what a life that TRULY HONORS, my gifts and talents without COSTING me, might feel and look like. 

Day 28

Sitting on the balcony porch of the condo, listening to the earth breath.  In...Out...In...Out...
Nice!!!!

Day 25

Started my road trip to Florida Thursday night after class.  I managed to time it so I hit a "clear" window between snow storms and storms that are traversing the central part of the country.  I left Wisconsin under winter conditions, but with clear roads.  I stayed over night in Lafayette, Indiana and continued on my way Friday morning.  I didn't see signs of other than winter conditions until I crossed into Tennessee.  This is a photo through  the front windshield, of trees in bloom in someones front yard.  It was around the time I was in Tennessee that I started to see that green fog of new leaves on the trees that whispers of spring, and rebirth, and life's renewal.  It wasn't until Alabama that I started to see truly green grass.  I soooooooooooooo needed this "fix" of spring and new life; of beach and sea and sand.  I started grinning ear to ear the moment I turned off of Hwy 65 and headed across Alabama to Florida.  And when I hit the Florida State line, I rolled down my window and shouted to the world, "YES!!!  HELLO FLORIDA!!!"

Day 24

Leaving in two days for Florida.  Leaving the snow, ice, winter, and gray of Wisconsin behind and going to white sand beaches, walks to St. Andrew Park, swimming in the Gulf and listening to the earth breath.  It doesn't get better than that.  I have a week and a half to soak it all up.