Project 137

Project 137 created by Patti Digh is an amazing community that I have joined.  I love this group's theme of Love Well, Live Fully, Let Go Deeply and Make a Difference. 

Today is our fifth day and I wrote this haiku for our prompt to let go deeply of our day.

fluttering away


slowly peeling each layer 


kissing each with love

release with each beat 


deeply breathing in meaning 


prayer-like offering

filled with gratitude 


looking forward with joy for 


another sun rise

To Every Season . . .

To every season and to the end of summer time is always a lovely time as the fruits and vegetables ripen.  The farmers' market is full of the bounty of our summertime work, and we can rejoice that we've made it through the growing season.  For me, this season is a great reminder of our vulnerability and our dependency on nature for our livelihood.

When I grew up in San Francisco, I was not aware of the seasons and how our food was grown as I never saw a growing plant amidst the "concrete jungle".  We had only one park in Chinatown where the grass was grown in planters, and of course I never saw vegetables or fruit growing in it's natural state.  I still remember the first time that I found green beans hiding under their bush leaves - it seemed like magic to me - that here was how one of my favorite vegetables grew.  They were perfect and looked just like the ones that we bought in the grocery store!  Or the first time when we happened to be on a ranch and we were allowed to climb trees.  We sat in an apricot tree eating fresh heavy juicy fruit straight from the branches, and the juice from the fruit ran down my face and arms.  I still remember the flavor--rich, sweet and so distinct and I knew I was in heaven.  There has never been another apricot to compare with those that I ate ripe out of that tree.

Although we do not have a large garden or fruit trees in our yard, we are fortunate that our neighbors are generous and share with us their cherries and rhubarb.  Sometimes they ask us to take their overabundance, and we are glad to do so.  So this year we tried some new recipes for preserving the fruit and the cheery and rhubarb liqueur seems to be a success.  We're saving a few bottles to be savored this winter when the snow and temperatures are down, and we know we will be sipping the liqueurs and remembering these lazy hot days of summer.

Such A Time As This . . .

In cleaning out some of my files I came across my handwritten notes and the notes were clearly written in a hurry, abbreviations, and chopped sentences.  The notes were good and I searched for the presentation and found the 2008 Fall Convocation address by our now President Emeritus Bill Robinson.  His presentation inspired me then, and re-reading the transcript inspires me now.

I include the link here:  Such A Time As This . . .

Thank you Bill for this perspective, and I love hearing my name mentioned in this context.

Time for Reflection

As I am preparing for the training of our student leaders, as I am thinking about leadership,
and what I would like to impart to our students, I come back to the book, Tao of Leadership by John Heider.  I find these two very helpful.

12.  Time for Reflection

Endless drama in a group clouds consciousness.  Too
  much noise overwhelms the senses.  Continual input

  obscures genuine insight.

Do not substitute sensationalism for learning.                                  

Allow regular time for silent reflection.  Turn inward and digest

  what has happened.  Let the senses rest and grow still.

Teach people to let go of their superficial mental chatter and

  obsessions.  Teach people to pay attention to the whole body’s

  reaction to a situation.

When group members have time to reflect, they can see more

  clearly what is essential in themselves and others.

13.  Success

If you measure success in terms of praise and criticism, your anxiety will be endless.

Having a good reputation or becoming well-known for your work can be a hindrance to your further development.

Fame is as burdensome as caring for yourself properly.

What is the problem with praise and criticism?

If the group applauds one thing you do, and then you feel good, you will worry if they do not applaud as loudly the next time.  If they are critical, if they argue or complain, you will feel hurt.

 Either way, you are anxious and dependent.

How is fame like caring for yourself?

In order to do good work, you must take good care of yourself.     

You must value yourself and allow others to value you also. 

But if you make too much of yourself, you will become egocentric.

  Egocentricity injures both self and work.

If you can live with the fruits of success and care for yourself

 properly, you will be able to foster success in other people.

But Look! It's All of Us Together

I know, I know the photo is over-exposed

some have the sun in their eyes, some of the faces are shaded

You could have set up this shoot better, yes, yes

But look!  It's all of us together - we just bumped into each other

at the Moscow Saturday Farmer's market! 

We hardly ever have the opportunity to see each other,

for just a while, in the middle of the market!

and there we are all talking at once!  Where are you going, where have you come from,

how long are you staying, what have you been doing, how's the job, 

how's the sabbatical going, how was your sabbatical, what did you do, and more! 

Translating to mean; we love you, we miss you, we're happy for you, 

travel safely, and good luck! and let's get together again!

To have Nick here just before going to work with the bees,

Ivar living in Seattle and commuting to Moscow

Pat beginning her sabbatical with travel plans for the next few months

Katrina and Diego traveling through on their way to Italy and Germany,

and ultimately to Peru for nine months

Wayne NOT playing tennis at the moment

and myself, back to work after a six month sabbatical, and just down for a quick weekend

And here we are all - realizing how fleeting these moments can be,

together enjoying each other, sharing as fast as we can, 

making promises to catch up, to see each other 

at the next cross-roads wherever that may be - Lima? Cuba? Moscow?

So, yes, the photo is overexposed, underexposed, facing into the sun . . . but we're all together!

Last Year This Time . . .

 Last year this time, as we have for many years, we take our dog Zeus (and before him, Fudge, and before him, Sherlock) for their morning walk in this public field.  Bordered by the Palouse River, open for everyone to use, surrounded by the beautiful farm fields and to the east, the Moscow Mountains, this type of public space is as pleasant for us as is for our dogs.

Regular mowing by our city workers, and early 5am watering keeps this field in tip top shape.  We have watched the change of the seasons as the field stays open year-round.

Summer soccer and t-ball for the kids and families with the year-round schedule of games, practices, and work outs.    In the winter, cross-country skiers loop the field creating an informal track to keep us in shape.   Spring thaw and flooding by the river makes it tricky to use the fields and often it will be tagged off-limits until the ground settles.  We abide by these notices, though impatiently, waiting until the fields are in shape as we all respect the desire to keep these fields in the best condition. Late summer and fall allows easy strolls and witnessing of the harvest of the nearby wheat fields.  The life cycle of the seasons allows us to appreciate nature and our precious environment.

The grass today feels luscious under foot, and the trees provide shade on one side of the field as we anticipate 97 to 100 degrees of heat.  We know we will be out again this evening and can enjoy the late day respite from the heat.  I am thankful for this field and the walks that I have taken here allowing me the space to be meditative and rested.  A peaceful environment to work out the daily busy-ness of life.  

I thought of this field when I was recently in the midst of my beloved Chinatown, San Francisco, and realized that I had the advantage of knowing that this place existed for me when I needed open fields, quiet and solitude.

Oh, how lucky we are to live here with our lovely field, spaciousness, and fresh air!

And There I Am

And there I am

Sitting prettily with my ankles crossed

Frilly socks folded down just so,

shiny black patent-leather shoes,

skirt splayed out perfectly around me

A buttoned cardigan fitting trimly

Hands folded peacefully in my lap

Patiently waiting

and there I am

At the age of six with red lipstick

to bring out my best color

Hair easily framing my round face

What thoughts were flying through as I am posed

In place for this portrait

What questions do I have,

 what stories do I have to tell?

and there I am

Could I have imagined all that I would know?

That not everyone would respect me,

I would be violated for just being myself

Unknown,

no consideration for me as a person

And somehow I became an object

not worthy of having dreams

treated because of how I looked

and relegated to the exotic,

not possessing smarts and savvy

And there I am

giving in to the stereotypes for a time

Thinking I was less than,

that something was wrong with being me

And for a time believing

in these false persistent images

No one to tell me,

no one to tell me differently

And there I am

Surviving the lies and the stereotypes

Challenging the reasons for the falseness

Shedding the layers of silence

Heavy for too long, shedding slowly,

Gaining momentum as the stories snake forth,

Building, coiling and springing open

free to strike

And there I am

no longer sitting quietly with hands in my lap,

ankles crossed, patiently, perfectly waiting.

Writing furiously for lost time

 to capture the stories

to record the truth,

to leave a legacy

words spilling like a waterfall,

rushing for the right words,

right phrases coughing,

choking, spewing forth

and here I am.