twist of fate

Since the start of this journey (and blog, boot scoot'n & takin' flight...), it had been the genesis and namesake, first inspired by a quote by Plato (code of silence (#sue, #secretsociety123)) during some of my darkest days, and later reinforced during my spiritual explorations. He was an honorable mention in the first post (boot scoot'n & takin' flight...) and guest of honor in the last (unsent letters (part 3)), and while it didn't initially occur to me when my friends talked me into moving here, the thought didn't escape me as I was packing that I was heading where he began (unsent letters (part 3)).

It was our first road trip as a family and as we were driving into my neighborhood at 4am, the convenience store around the corner felt like a beacon to a new adventure and with tired eyes and body, it was a step closer to a much needed sleep, after a stressful two months of packing, traveling and caring for an ailing pup. While the move has had its challenges, allowing things to just flow has opened up doors that I had not imagined nor expected.

I'm grateful for the time that my dad was here to help me with the transition and making my new place feel like 'home', knowing that I will always treasure these memories alone with him. It has been sweet to see my boy running around in his newfound backyard, exploring all the new scents of the greenway and healing in the new environment. I had chosen him for his independence but I had become wistful as the months went by where he would barely let me hold him before he wiggled out to explore. Waking up to the birds, trees and sunlight peaking through has felt like Mother Nature's version of therapy, but nothing compares to the moment when he truly snuggled with his mum for the first time. Feeling his heart beat as he dreamt in my arms, I knew that the months of wistfulness was needed for me to truly appreciate the specialness of this moment of touch. The polarity (triggering) . . . the contrast.

In one of the last boxes to unpack, I had forgotten about a lightbox I was gifted in a Buy Nothing group before I had left. While it didn't have the requisite number of letters, I soon realized that my lucky number could double for the missing letter, if upside down. Being the house at the end of the cul-de-sac, it seems as if many come this far to turn around and/or use my path to traverse to the greenway behind my house. I had thought about expanding my fence to the property line, but wanting the home to be welcoming and a place to share, I decided that making the path more welcoming, with a Free Library stand, is in the spirit of love and knowledge. With the lightbox in the window, it is a reminder for all to heed Joseph Campbell's wise words ... follow your bliss!

My neighbor and I have a running inside joke, as I had removed some trees to install solar as well as to protect the home. He had shared that he recently moved from Colorado over a year ago, where it was sunny, hot and a lot of boulders and hard surfaces. He came here hoping for the opposite, looking for a house with a lot of trees and immersing himself in the woods. In the last year, he found himself constantly opening curtains and turning on lights as his place was too shaded. With the contrast, he expressed his fresh admiration that he now acknowledges that what he needed was the balance. So his parting words, with a smile, have been, "thank you for bringing sunshine into my life".

Now having driven by that convenience store for a month now, I haven't had to stop, no longer owning an ICE vehicle. I have seen it on Google Maps plenty of times, and it is labeled 76, for the gas station. As I was stopped at the red, in what should have surprised me but somehow made me smile instead at the 'knowing', lo and behold, emblazoned for all to see ... 

While this seems like a fitting end to the blog, I know it is only the beginning of the end, and wherever it takes me, I am learning to just 'allow' and go with the flow, appreciating the contrasts and enjoying the unfolding along the way. So much beauty to be seen, and as the rest of Campbell's advice goes ...

"'Follow your bliss!' Find where it is, and don't be afraid to follow it.

To find your own way is to follow your own bliss. This involves analysis, watching yourself and seeing where the real deep bliss is -- not the quick little excitement, but the real deep, life-filling bliss."

~ Joseph Campbell (Joseph Campbell Foundation)

We don't 'will' our bliss ... we 'discover' it.