The morning dawns clear and bright and Kelee joins me (see previous post A Three Legged Man of the West)…
… for coffee and a bit of my book. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…
I head downstairs to put on my walking boots and am confronted by my studio, its easels lying fallow for many months now. But I notice them and am reminded that twice, recently, a whisper of painting has pulled at my imagination… maybe soon I will be fully well and painting again (see previous post An Antidote for Pain).
The dogs show some interest as I dress for the walk, a routine they well know.
Speaking of dressing for the walk, you might want to see what I look like in all this garb before you decide to join me. It ain’t pretty I’m afraid!
But then we are out and nothing else matters. It is silent beyond words. A raven flies above me and I HEAR its wings cutting through the sky, bringing an immediate and private smile to my lips. I FEEL the frigid air as I breathe it in deeply, through my throat and into my lungs. I can almost taste the juniper, seemingly forming fragrant ice crystals in the air. THIS is my back yard. I’m entering into my fifth winter here and I still pinch myself at my good fortune. I am living a dream. I am living MY dream.
Kelee takes his first roll in the snow, an act I still cannot catch for you he is so fast. Finn (see previous post Rescue Dog: Meet Finn (Survivor)) is far ahead, as usual, making our path and the canyon alongside us safe for our passage. What a good dog! And my dear little Skye (see previous post Night Skye) is at home, still too scared to join us on our walks. She hasn’t been out the front door for almost two years I’m afraid. She does, however, have the outdoor kitty enclosure, thankfully, and she tears around it at high speed digging a race track in the snow.
It’s been too long since our last snow so it’s getting thin in some places, exposing the ground and the rock. I find that so beautiful, but not on my road. It’s starting to turn to mud in some places, which is deep and slick–slicker than the snow in fact–and much messier. UPS and Fed X don’t deliver to my house in the winter. Their trucks can’t make it. Thankfully (truly) I have a Jeep. And sometimes I must use every inch of her 4LOW. My first year here I went off my road into snow drifts and was stuck more times than I care to remember. But I know my road now and respect it so, fingers crossed, that won’t be happening again any time soon.
Kelee cuts through the barbed wire fence where it’s a little bit higher from the ground. It’s amazing to me how he and Finn know and remember all the weak places in the fencing for, seemingly, miles around. The wildlife know them too. I see their tracks every day, moving through the fencing and across the fields. The other day there were clear cougar tracks. They were HUGE and rather awe-inspiring.
And this brings me to one of my favorite spots. Those of you who have been reading the blog very long will have seen photos of it many times–in different light, different seasons, different times of day. I never tire of seeing and shooting it.
It is something of a quiet meditation for me. I can FEEL my heart rate slow at the sight of it.
And then the sun comes out from behind the clouds, changing everything…
… and I am home…
… writing to you. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh…
Many blessings and much love to you,
Jeane
Ahhhhh, sunshine. My, my my…I love the sunshine:) So today I will go out with my waterproof camera to see what I can muster into fun with that in the rain lol!! Love your photos – thanks so much for sharing! 🙂 xoxox
Thank you, Grace. I hope your wanderings in the rain brought you inspiration and fun. I’m wishing some sun for you, though, and it would be lovely if you could send some of your precip over here!
Beautiful beyond words……..thank you for sharing!
Thank you, Jody. What a truly lovely compliment. Thank you for writing to tell me. It’s my great pleasure to share.
Love the walking duds. Very chic!!!
You’re funny.
Hoped you would get giggle out of it. Actually I thought it was kinda cute.
I’m just grateful to be WARM!
Thanks for sharing your life, Jeane.
Wow, I missed this one, Laura. It somehow didn’t show up in my inbox. But let me just say it’s my pleasure. Thank you for being there offering someone to share with.
Is this how you stay so thin, considering the wonderful food you cook?
What a nice compliment, Sherry, thank you! Walking really is my main (and right now only) exercise, so I guess it is what’s helping to keep me reasonably fit. When I’m well I do some other exercises every day but they only take 15 minutes. I think it really helps to be at 8500 feet. EVERYTHING counts as exercise up here! But, also, as wonderful as the food is that KIM cooks (not me), I watch how much I eat. That’s my only real “dieting.” I pretty much allow myself to eat what I want in moderation. That has always worked for me.
I had the same question. It is nice that Sherry asked it :-).
What a sweet thought, Laura. Thank you. I guess a part of me has decided that I want to be relatively thin and I want to take care of my body (it does so much for me) by giving it exercise. So, if that’s my consciousness, I do the things that will create that. But my life is not at all about denying myself good things. I still eat Haagen Dazs and all of Kim’s delectable meals and treats. I just do it in moderation.