578

just a few notes from my week.

--i'm relishing the poems in red bird. so good. every single poem feels like it was written just for me, just for this moment that i find myself in.

--been spending time each day in my backyard. do you remember the backyard challenge? i haven't kept up with the set but almost every day i take a photo there. yesterday i went outside without my camera and heard the scratching of towhees, watched as ants played follow the leader down the side of a flowerpot, saw a painted lady butterfly flitting about in our garden, tasted a mulberry from our tree. it's a little haven.

--find myself wanting to document the color of the sky each day. the hazy blues have started to appear.

--this song has been on my mind this week.

thank you for all of the reassurance, encouragement, and listening ears. we are ready for the move and are looking forward to exploring our new home.

hope you find yourself in a happy place this weekend. have fun.

577

i love going to my mom's to visit. we always eat such great southern food, and my southern accent returns. it all feels so cozy and good. this visit involved lots of laughs with my grandmother, a trip to our favorite restaurant (the sea biscuit), and time with both of my siblings.

ten more days left. i've been hoping to get lost in a book....an absorbing story that will carry me through to the end of my time here, but it seems like i all i can stand to read is buddhist philosophy or poetry. i'm needing something simple yet profound. something that reassures me that change is inevitable, natural, the way. something short but powerful.

i will write again soon when i have more to say. hope you all are well.

576

things i've learned while packing:

i have too many books...even when i make a pile to donate there are still too many. but i love them so and well, i was gifted with 25 of my choice from the bookshop where i work. they are sadly going out of business.

green tea infused with peach and dark chocolate help. hey, they even put you in the packing mood.

luna is the perfect music for packing...and driving, summer bbqs, you name it. seriously, luna creates desert island music. currently obsessed with lunapark and the song slide but any and all luna is fine by me.

vinyl is good. tom pared down our collection, but we still had fun listening to the rejects while packing.

maggie and rilke are no help whatsoever.

i procrastinate taking packages to the post office. gracia and louise and camilla, your packages go out this weekend! sorry it has taken me ages!

when paring back on clothing, it is imperative to have mini fashion shows.

this has nothing to do with packing but i have to say kohlrabi is good. we just followed a standard recipe but man oh man i'm all about the kohlrabi now.

off to charleston soon for one last visit with my family so i won't be back in the space until the middle of next week.


happy weekend. wish you all could come over and pack a box or two.

575

and now it’s a jumble of popsicles
tornadoes that weren’t
a canvas bag of groceries
a bicycle helmet
walking in the rain for burritos
daydreaming about lily pads
carrot tops, radishes, hops.

we walk forward
toes pointed north
arms waving goodbyes
streets becoming lines
that cross and tangle

the clearing ahead
is nothing more
than future minutes
sing-song rhythms
the call of a crow

we are going now

574

hi there.

i have been meaning to show you these pretties taken by my friend sheri. aren't they lovely? coincidentally, she is having a little photo giveaway on her blog today. pop over, take a peek, and say hello.

she also is involved with the mama focus contest, which is accepting submissions until may 31st. there is still plenty of time for you camera toting mamas to enter!

oh! one last thing. i picked up two kohlrabi at the farmer's market and i have no idea what to do with them. suggestions for dinner?

xo
s

573

hi friends.

the days are filling up, the boxes have been brought down from the attic, and we are finally starting to pack. the bare bones of the house can be seen again. i'm struggling with letting some of our possessions go. it seems that i can always find a good reason to bring something along to vermont. i've been talking about this to one of my friends, and she suggested that i bring these items to our little going away party. if a friend takes one of the items that i'm attached to then perhaps it won't seem so painful to let it go. i really like this idea.

i'm having trouble focusing this morning. it could be the move and my to-do list or it could be the fact that i want to challenge tom to a rematch at scrabble. ;)

hope your day is nice.

572

this weekend i was revisiting photos and this one from early 2008 called to me. something about the light, the color, the beach grass. it was taken near my mom's house, and i suddenly realized how i won't be able to see this view as often. i love walking to the beach from my mom's place. you are surrounded by tall houses, trees, powerlines, and then it all opens up. the freedom embodied in all of that open space never fails to move me.

it is so different from walking in the forest, though i admit i love the forest too. in the forest, you are surrounded, protected in a sense. you feel as though you can hide, disappear. on the beach, you feel free. the openness inspires bravery, confidence.


all of this to say, i will miss these southern landscapes. i wonder where i will spend my days in vermont?