my tribe

i like how the word tribe is used to describe those in your close circle, your best friends and strongest connections, the like-minded souls you feel akin with. it sounds like a sacred word in a somewhat cold and secular world. to be in someone's tribe is a great honor and privilege.

artwork by my nephew, frankie

in my own life, my tribe is small and change is rare. i guard my tribe fiercely and have a very nurturing role with its members. it brings me heartache to have someone within, for whatever reason, move on. my tribe gives life meaning to me and inspires my best self to come forward. i continue to hope and work for a better world because of my tribe. who makes up your tribe?

birth day stories

every time someone i know celebrates a birthday i ask to hear their birth day story. we all have one that is as unique as we are. where were you born? what time of day did you make your appearance? who was there? what was the weather like at that time? each birth is surrounded by joy and pain, hopes and dreams, memories and connections. there is an energy that is present when someone enters this world that contains so much possibility. time holds billions of birth stories out there and each one is sacred and precious. i encourage you to tell these stories, write them down, linger over the details and make them a part of the fabric that is your family.

a life on paper

i love the names of certain towns: peace river, harmony, dove creek, santa fe. i imagine saying and writing my address there. i plan a life that includes long walks, flower gardens, dreamy views. i mentally arrange all the furniture and plants on my front porch. inside, i keep my cats, over-stuffed chairs and stacks of books. oh, and all these homes have fire places and banana bread baking in the oven. just the pleasing name of a dot on the map and i can envision a whole future in that place.

desert moon rise

this summer my husband and i have been making a date on the night of the full moon to drive out into the desert and watch the full moon rise.

we set up chairs and soak up all the evening ambiance: the fading heat, bird calls, and the faint whispering of cars zooming by on the nearby road. the anticipation is intense and makes me giddy. then, without fail, we see the white sphere begin to appear. it is a show that has been running for thousands of years and yet it never fails to enchant. i remind myself that there are only a limited number of moon rises left in my lifetime - a bittersweet reminder to fully enjoy each one. i hope to continue this "tradition" into the fall and winter months.

memory with flavor

yesterday i ate about 20 of these little heath candy bars!

it's not that they aren't so delicious (although i didn't care for them as a kid) but this was my mom's favorite treat. she didn't indulge often but when she had candy it was usually a heath bar. or at least that's the way i remember it. so yesterday, while i was putting them into my mouth every few minutes, i remembered her. the perfect description of emotional eating! i don't often associate food with such strong memories but this connection was so clear. there are many ways i think of my mom each day and i don't plan to make this a habit, but for just this once it was a sweet trip down memory lane.

a few good questions

ihanna used this quote in one of her recent blog posts:

"The simplest questions are the most profound. Where were you born? Where is your home? Where are you going?

What are you doing? Think about these once in a while and watch your answers change."

Richard Bach

i plan to use these questions to guide one of my journal pages later today. just thinking about them makes my mind branch off into the possibilities of answers so i am anxious to get them down on paper. what would you say? and what will we say ten years from now?

frida find

last weekend i was in a used bookstore and bought this book of postcards for just $2.50!

i am so intrigued with all things frida. a couple of years ago my friend, kl, and i got to visit her home in mexico city and i was so mesmerized by the way her spirit was felt in every part of it. her husband, the artist diego rivera, described her work as being "as lovable as a beautiful smile and as cruel as all the bitterness of life." i am planning to send these postcards to the fabulous women in my life to let them know how much they mean to me.