Nature does go about its business expeditiously. Each flowering plant gets its slot during the year. Even now, before the grass is green and leaves have developed, seeds are being made.
In flowers.
In catkins.
At least I think those are catkins. I am not sure what sort of tree is producing those.
Catkins, or aments, are surprising things, a variation on flowers basically. Most folks are unaware of them. Many are wind-blown, as are these. Birch produce catkins, those long drooping things, looking like a soft dull green/brown pine cone.
Right now I am looking to nature to find hope for this world and for lessons of the cycles of life. But yet, I worry. All of this is so delicate, the process, I mean, and how nature has spent millions of years finding that balance.
Ah, Balance, Balance, Balance.
Do I sound like Chance the Gardner? “As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden.”
How is your balance? What simple but profound insight do you have for today?
Elwood P. Dowd: Years ago my mother used to say to me, she’d say, “In this world, Elwood, you must be” – she always called me Elwood – “In this world, Elwood, you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant.” Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant. You may quote me.
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Nice pictures, Clyde; I love seeing the new life starting to grow. And I love catkins.
My balance these days is not so good. It’s not a healthy lifestyle in so many ways, but it should be over in 3 weeks and then I can get back to a more balanced life.
The only insight I can give is a quote from Dr. Scott on Dinosaur Train (a kids’ PBS show): “Get outside, get into nature, and make your own discoveries.”
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What’s happening in three weeks, ljb?
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temp job ends. it’s horrible. i wrote a short blog post on it that I have yet to submit.
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I hear you, ljb.
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i love being there
i love jerzey kozinski
the theme behind jerzey kosinski is to eliminate all but the absolute required words
no waste no fluff
that may have broad merit in life
the native americans (my people) lived within the circle of life clyde refers to. it is easily missed in today’s world where it is possible to bypass contact with nature and other human beings quite easily
is life from within or from outside
yes is the answer
now find the question
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A thing is right if it tends to preserve the stability, integrity, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong if it tends otherwise.
– Aldo Leopold
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Nice
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My only simple but profound thought for today is “Let sleeping babies and their parents sleep, and get up and make your own coffee”.
Balance? Well, perhaps I have balance now, as I feel in a less stressed place than I was in March and April. Thst said, March and April were stressful, and perhaps I am just in the eye of the hurricane right now.
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Our Hazelnut shrubs have catkins on them now.
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Lucky you, to have hazelnut shrubs and catkins.
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saw them on the birches today
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Rise and Balance, Baboons,
This must be a cosmic theme this week. I hope the link below works. I showed this video yesterday in group for a mindfulness exercise. This woman’s balance is so engaging, pulling me into her balance.
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I have seen this video before, and it’s exquisite.
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It’s also an excellent demonstration of how little it takes to disturb the balance of something. Human beings seem to forget that with all of their human doings.
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As thought-provoking as it is inevitable, death comes to each of us in due time. It’s what we do in the interim that matters.
I don’t mean to sound morbid, but as I’ve aged I’ve come to realize that death is not the ultimate insult or something that won’t ever pertain to me. Rather I now think of it as the ultimate conclusion to this stage of life. I find that thought rather comforting on this lovely spring day when rebirth is evident all around me.
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You found where my mind was when I wrote this. Two nights ago death would have been a relief, but life would go on.
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NS, I’m sorry that you so regularly are dealing with such pain that death seems a pleasant alternative. Thankfully, that’s not where I’m coming from. I’ve lost several friends in recent months due to age and disease, and because most of my friends are over seventy years of age, I’m sure that will become a more frequent occurrence. For that reason, I’m more determined than ever to enjoy every moment that I can.
Last night I saw a play at the Penumbra that dealt with a highly provocative and difficult subject. “This Bitter Earth” is a play about an interracial gay couple and their struggle for a meaningful relationship. It’s on through May 20th, and I highly recommend it with this caveat: If you’re offended by expletives and uncomfortable with same sex relationships, stay away. If you’re not, I guarantee you’ll be moved by the performance. It may even give you the occasional light bulb moment.
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the circle of life isnt always kind. i hope it lightens up a bit for you. fm is something i dont think about without thinking of the problems it has caused for you. i hope the answer for your pain is discovered soon. its been a long time of search with no good findings.
i hope the right guy pops up. you should be a test study for someone who is trying to cure the cause not the symptom
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nature needs more fruits veggies berries clean drink water warm bath water shelters soft sleeping places within a half days walk around the world n all continents connected by land bridge
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David, your stream of consciousness writing style echoes that of our tim. Who knew there could be two of you in this world!
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yeah, i could hawe ciffee with this guy. come back soon david
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Did you mean covfefe?
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how far apart would you have to put these stops on the land bridge to be a 1/2 days walk. the land bridge form alaska to siberia would be a one or two day trip bet the one from northamerica to europe would be a great journey but it would require a pit stop every 25 miles at 3 miles an hour of walking and every 10-15 miles for how it would be for my mom to walk 1/2 day
a placwe ith fruiot veggies cold water, a warm bath and a place to sleep could be the formula for making life a place we can all embrace. i visualize it like a wayside rest with deluxe accommodations kind of hostel with an airport bathroom sort of feel.
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I like to think I have good balance in my life. I know it seems like I get a little stressed out during High season in February and March but I tend to think that I have very little stress in my job the rest of the year. And I don’t bring my work home with me very often; I have a pretty good buffer between work and life which is something I like a lot.
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Nomads, such as the plains native Americans, are nomads because when they settle in a place they damage it, pollute it with human and animal waste, kill of nearby animals to eat, tamp down the soil, kill the vegetation. They move onto another place to damage. It takes some years for the ground to recover. In the plains natives case, not that many years. Nomads have to be a small population in a large territory.
If all human population were to have ended in 1718, how long would it have taken the earth to recover from our damage? A few millennia I assume. What would it take today? How many epochs?
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I just reserved the book I’ve mentioned before “The World Without Us” by Alan Weisman. I’ll get back to you with his predictions after I’ve read it.
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This is a great book…. no other spoiler alerts from me!
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I feel like I’m more in balance lately because I’ve been saying “No” to some requests for my time and energy.
That said, I just hosted a little brunch for us 2 and 5 others, part of our spring UU Circle Meals, designed for people to get to know each other better. It went just fine, thank you, and I am emboldened to do something like this more often. After cleaning up, I went and took an almost nap. I like the ability to do that kind of balance.
The flower up top is a bloodroot, and I transplanted one last summer from a friend’s place – I am thrilled to say it took, and I have one of these out back by the garage.
Will be back later, hopefully, with an insight.
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My insights seem to be sadly lacking, too. Wow, what a nice day is about my brain will dislodge this weekend. Yesterday I was weeding and digging a very weedy flower bed. I am so out of shape but I really slept well last night.
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Not sure if this is a deep insight or just a lesson I should have learned long ago, but if you don’t dust on the top of your books on the bookshelf, it eventually gets really gross. (Organized and dusted bookshelf in my bedroom today. Two bags of books for the library book sale and one bag of books for the trash…. yes trash was the right place.
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Wouldn’t I love to see that stack of books! (the one for the sale)
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I’m trying to restore balance to my life here. A windstorm wiped out electric power in half of my apartment complex, including the part I live in. Then the internet went down, which killed email. Cable TV went down. WiFi went down, and the only radio that works here depends on a WiFi signal. My fridge went dead for over a day. Several lights in the apartment (but not all) stopped working. My bathroom is an inky dark cave so I operate by touch and sound in there. No coffee. The microwave and the electric stove are dead. Somehow we lost hot water, so no more showers.
Bit by bit, a few things have come back. Then died. Then came back again. Joni was right: You never know what you got till it’s gone!
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Yikes, that sounds positively harrowing, Steve. Hope you have it all back soon!
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Thanks, BiR. I got it back. Then I lost it. Got it back. Lost it. Got it back.
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In the many years we’ve been conversing on the Trail, at least eight baboons have lost companion animals, and unfortunately I’m joining that group today. My little cat Jory, not quite sixteen. Cancer and kidney failure.
I adopted Jory with one of his littermates. The other, Jomo, died very young of a rare form of blood cancer. So I feel lucky to have had Jory this long. Still, it’s never an easy thing to accept.
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So sorry, Linda.
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That means this is such a hard day. I always wish they could stay with us forever. I am sending comfort vibes.
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Will you get another kitten?
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I have two senior cats, and I don’t think either of them particularly wants a new resident. I can’t say what might be down the road, though. Sometimes you go out looking for a cat or a kitten, but most often they happen to you.
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That’s been my experience, too.
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animals get you because they are so simply themselves. there is no petty bs no pretense. no bickering about stuff people bicker about. animals are simply there to be loving and to be loved. there is no deception, no hiding, only a mutual understanding and a mutual respect love and effort to do what is best. you can never replace the relationship and never duplicate it.
peace linda, 16 years is a long time to hang with a friend every day and every night. it will be a while before you get over it. no hurry. embrace the gifts jory left you with.
the decision about pets is always known when the moment is upon you. you never have to reach, it always reaches you.
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I’m so, so sorry, Linda. Losing a well-loved pet is painful. I hope you find some comfort in the friendship you shared for almost sixteen years.
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I am so sorry to hear about Jory, Linda. As I recall, he was quite a character, and I’ve enjoyed hearing stories about him. At some point I hope you’ll tell us one is his memory.
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Good luck, Linda. I hope you can feel right about getting a new kitty soon.
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Quite the weekend for some of you. We spent day at Gilfillan for confirmation of our little Christmas girl born 15 years ago in Dickinson. Like all women in my family and like Sandy she is confident, funny, and smart. I love small country churches. This one is 30 miles from where my mother lived the longest in her L. E. Wilder-like childhood. Also had a baptism. When my daughter had carried the little girl, Lily like our granddaughter, around the church, a short trip, she asked who wanted to hold the baby, several teenage boys raised their hands. On drive back almost every field had tractors at work in it. It is that day today. But too much activity for my fm. Got knocked far off balance.
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I too love the small country churches, Clyde – have had occasion to go to a few around here.
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