The Good Life: It really is a good life..

Yesterday as I was getting ready to ride my bike up to Council Crest and spend some meditative time alone, my friend Tad calls.. A few of my friends were hanging out, having a barbecue and jumping into a 3 foot pool filled with freezing cold hose water.. So I said, "I'm in, be there in a bit." So I quickly did a workout and hopped on my bike and pedaled over to Hawthorne in the sunshine. It wasn't exactly meditative time alone, but it served the same purpose: joy and resolution.

This weekend I didn't expect to figure it all out. I didn't expect that three days of spending time alone would lead me to any grand conclusions about what career I next want to go into, or how to heal my relationship with my mother. I know that it will take more than just one long weekend. But what I did realize is that I have a good life. I have a few problems, yes, but so does everyone else.. ultimately my life is wonderful. I have love and companionship, I have incredible friends, I have a comfortable place to live, I have plenty of food, I have a healthy and able body, I have good jobs that provide me with enough money, and I have ambition. So even though I am questioning certain things about my life, I know that it will come to me. My questions will be answered, well- at least the ones I need the answers to. And for the time being, I am happy and safe and healthy. I have abundance.

One thing I did decide this weekend is that this summer I am committing myself to experiencing joy. I am going to hang out with my friends more, be a bit more spontaneous, spend lots of time outside, and take spur of the moment adventures on days when I don't have much going on. I am going to do all the things that fill me with joy and grace.. I am going to surround myself with happiness and light so that my life will continue to be abundantly filled with exactly that. By making my journey a fulfilling one is how I will get the answers, how I will gain perspective and realize exactly who I am.. It's life.

Today Ramman came home around 1:30pm and I was thinking that I would do a workout and just hang out at home, but instead we spontaneously went to a river with his friend who is visiting for a week or so. His friend is from Portland originally and so he knew of a secluded spot on the Sandy River, about 45 minutes away. It was such a magical place. We got there and as it turned out it was a watershed and we had to hop a fence and walk about a mile (above picture) in to this bridge that was about 100 feet above the river. Nobody else was there. The river was pretty high, so instead of being able to just walk along the shallow rocks, we had to make our way down small cliffs, over rocks, and through brush until we got to one of the pools. We were all scratched up and stung by a few nettles so even though it wasn't too hot, we jumped right into the FREEZING water. It felt so amazing. The river wasn't the only thing that refreshed me.. I felt very calm in this place. I even could hear what sounded like voices as we were trekking through the woods.. happy voices.. river voices. It was the strangest thing; it was comforting. This is the way that I want to spend my summer.. my life. Enjoying the unknown experiences that make me feel alive and connected with the worlds around me.

The view of the river from the bridge: