HICKORY PASS RANCH #13

WAFFLES, MAPLE SYRUP, & A HARMONICA

-- DAY 21

By (c) Russ Barnes.  All rights reserved: text & photo

July 28, 2008, Monday.  My actual birthday.  The girls make me waffles.  These little girls treat me like a king.  I am serene. They give me the best maple syrup.   I am hale and hearty. 

Gifts from Anne

I open Anne’s presents from a pretty box I bring all the way from Washington.  There is a harmonica.  Perfect for “Home on the Range.”   The dog goes wild when he hears that harmony.  I love the Byron Katie stuff on the CD Anne packs.  [“Is that true?” Byron Katie asks.]  And a jar of Indian herbs good for making squash soup. 

Taking it easy today.  No writing.  Just meditating, pacing.

I’m thinking about what Joe says.  He says, Karen never could work with a man.  I countered, “She could work with me."  Joe said, “You were different.  You made her feel good about herself.”  I said to Joe, “She was good about herself .” He says, “Yes, that's true.”

NEVER MARRY THE CHEERLEADER

Joe tells me much about the troubles in his first marriage, which was brief.  His advice: “Never marry the cheerleader.” 

The dog is not around me today.  He’s been with the girls all day and they put him through different sorts of paces.  I’ll let him rest and then I’ll run his butt off again.

I realize I have only nine or ten days before my plane returns to Baltimore.  I have been a happy camper here at Hickory Pass Ranch.  I have no idea what my situation will be like when I get back to Washington.  In preparation, I contact Trinity Episcopal Church in Marble Falls and the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin for possible counseling about my return.  Graciously, they make arrangements for meetings scheduled for the two days I will spend in Austin before my departure.

It’s a scary time for me.  But I have had such a positive experience here, have gotten so much work done, have had so much friendship, so much fun -- even joy --  and cooperation that I feel energized even in the face of uncertainty.

I remember in another context saying to myself in a moment of doubt, “My heart is beating and I am a free man.”  For all the trouble in life, there is nothing better than that.

To be continued tomorrow.

Go to sequel #1, #2, #3, #4, #5, #6 ,#7, #8, #9, #10, #11 #12, #13