Embrace the unusual, the feared, the sought after, the dream.
reflections of a through line.
let it flow into you
there are no walls here
a home in the shadows
we speak in ten thousand words
you came from before
in the simple wildness of perception
and carried the weight of the soul
reflecting in us, truth
shifting in the currents
a delightful expression of change
we met there in the waves of wisdom
crashing into the mouth
in the waters of the seven seas
a profound coming together
and a fearlessness that knows no bounds
she guides our movement, onwards
THE SEQUOIA
Your tongue set my world on fire.
It’s a good thing that I have thick skin.
THE SEEDLING
She said she would soon hit rock bottom.
I didn’t think that would stop her from growing through the cracks.
YOGA PANTS
You stretched.
You pulled.
You wrung me out.
But I still move with swag.
Because there’s a fire inside me that burns a certain fury. And the heat from the flames moves with a worthwhile presence. It carves out a cavity so deep and so absolute. You reside there in that hollowness. Holding my spirit in your heart and burning my fire with a love that roots deeper.
Not everything that is hollow is empty.
A city is silenced, and the birds no longer sing.
Blanketed by a suffocating opaqueness, I can no longer see.
It’s heavy in your presence, a fire rages inside of me.
A shadow is cast along the east from a brilliant westward sun.
Full heart and feet forward. I walk the line to the light.
Something from the dark radiates outward, tickling my skin. It moves behind me, catching the wind until it touches everything the light does.
Up there, along the ridge, the light meets the dark and together, they dance in the rhythm of peace.
<3
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Walks on Tam
She returns with a familiar feeling, bringing the comfort of a dew drop and carrying the scent of spring blooms. It's time to get goin'.
Out on the trail, I can feel the earth awakening. The light is returning and those dark and twisted days are slowly becoming shadows of the past. The hills are alive with new growth - trails hidden beneath long and wet stalks of grasses, broad and water pooled leaves of cow parsnip, and the occasional batch of glistening poison oak. The ground is soft and wet, no swirls of dust or static crunch beneath my feet as I glide along. The scents I pick up are fresh, untouched, natural.
High on the ridge, the threat of inclement weather only sparks my curiosity... it pulls me in with a ferocious care. I decide to keep steady on the trail, to only turn back when I feel I've really danced in her wicked snare.
I climb up, up and up. A quick peek over my shoulder and I catch a glimpse of the city to my rear - blanketed by the cold pacific waters. Up here, away, she looks calm and quiet but I know her streets are filled with city energies - ridden with frenzied, stressed, and anxious minds, bleak concrete and methodical lines.
These hills provide me with a temporary escape from the mechanized, to a place of solitude and gratitude - where I can fully embrace the natural world - the smell of a flower, the chirp of a bird, the cooing of a tree, and a place where I feel I can sore in the breeze.
In the headlands, the weather can turn on the flip of a switch, grounding me and testing my adaptability. As I finally reach the summit, the comfort of the initial ascent has slightly faded. The wind whisks past the hairs on my ears - the howling rage in the sky the only sound I hear. I stop and stand there, the only thing still - cocooned inside an opaque whiteness. The fog is thick and heavy with moisture. Pellets of rain thrash at my skin like a hundred little bee stings. As the rain penetrates my pores, a quick chill surges through me, sending shivers up my spine. The tips of my fingers are white and numb.
In this moment, I feel as though I'm at the center of it all... For nearly five minutes, I just stand there, breathing it in, literally soaking it up. Feeling the elements become a part of me, or me a part of them.
It was perhaps 12, or 13 or 14 miles later, having run back into the city where there was no wind, the streets dry, the trail the sidewalk and it's the familiar yet unfamiliar urban jungle I've become accustomed to that I smile remembering his words.. "It's all part of the adventure." It was on my traverse along the ridge that I met a photographer making his way out of the storm. He looked at me with a certain indescribable sense of understanding and quietly murmured those words to me. I think he similarly felt that same tug of curiosity, to escape the city noise for the stormy skies on the dangerous exposed rugged hills. He understood the desire to see, and feel, and hear, and be in everything that is awake and loud and alive.
The wind took me to where I'd see clearly in the misty, feel the warmth in the chill, sense the calm in the chaos and find a peace in the noise. I appreciate the contrasting moments that awaken who I am and where I want to be.
Appreciate the experience. Find pleasure in the challenge. There is comfort in contrast.
A tribute to earth's darkest hours.. as we welcome the light of a new year.
Each day, the sun is slowly lost to the horizon. This cyclic retreat advances a mysterious shadow that blankets everything it touches. Its thick and heavy and suffocates everything breathing. It creeps in, slowly inching its way across the pavement and up the exterior of homes and apartment buildings. It flickers through the trees, fighting with the light until it finally wins and paints the world black.
For some, the state of Darkness evokes fear; a fear of the unknown, of cold confinement. For others, it evokes mystery. An intrigue that beckons understanding.
I feared darkness when it nestled itself deep within my being. I feared it when it enveloped the sky. I feared it because I didn't understand it. A world within a world that was unfamiliar, cognizant and dispirited at the same time. I've written of experiences where I've truly felt darkness inside of me. That state of darkness allowed me to learn and grow and discover a part of myself that I now will never let go. But a sleepy world swathed in black has always been unfamiliar and mysterious. It's inauspicious presence unsettles the senses in a paralyzing grip. The only escape from its hold being the promise of a rising dawn. To confront the darkness...
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My breath filled the space in front of my eyes with plumes of whiteness and the light from my headlamp scattered significantly as it penetrated the fogginess... I was mystified by the world surrounding me. Sealed inside a vacuum of warped and blurred walls, there existed a humming silence. My vision dampened...
I meandered my way through groves of eucalyptus and cypress, distinguishable only by their colored and textured trunks, and only when my feet nearly had me running into them. I was left to trust my feet on the ground and though my connection to the earth's surface was strong, I felt a lack of gravity as I easily maneuvered the dynamic terrain, switching from roots and rocks to pillowed sand as I neared the coast. I opened up, let go, and settled into my stride with an almost intuitive awareness.
The humming silence broke as I neared the water, waves crashing in with such a force, it sounded as if the world was caving in on itself. I continued along the undulating coastline, absorbing the unbounded chaos as the water raced to shore. With no visual distractions, I was able to envision the lip of the wave curl and bend and crash as foaming whitewater. I saw it clearly and lucidly.
A quick right hand turn positioned the shoreline at my rear and a cool breeze whisked me from behind. As I bounded inland, the sound of the waves diminished. The land seemed to continue in a sinuous motion until I eventually found myself in that familiar thicket of timber. The trees cracked and cooed in the wind. I used to feel uneasy at the sound of their chatter but having met these trees before, I understood their non-threatening language.
The air was infused with the sweet scent of mint and pine. The peaceful aroma saturated my pores, sparking an almost immediate rejuvenation of mind and spirit. I ran in quiet contemplation- sensing, observing, being.
Occasionally, I'd catch a sparkling set of eyes on an enigmatic shadow off into the distance. This time, a call from a raven perched on a tree above warned me of the company that lie ahead... the coyote stood still and sanguine, non-threatening, remarkably enchanting.
The coyote is symbolic of the magic in life and creation. For some, it is associated with the dark side and bad omens. But the coyote can remind us of quite the opposite, with its uncanny resourcefulness and ability to survive. He represents the darkness in a different way, a dark reminder of the light that can come when you experience the feared and unexpected more fully.
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The world of darkness is alive, vibrant and healing.
"There is freedom waiting for you, on the breezes of the sky. And you ask, 'What if I fall? 'Oh but my darling, what if you fly?"
The slopes were painted vibrantly with shades of reds, oranges and yellows. At Paradise, fall had come. The new growth pines stood strong on the steep mountain slopes. Their strength radiating waves of energy that permeated my skin and increased with frequency in me. Deliberate and with intention, I set foot for higher grounds, seeking to discover that which I did not know.
I was in the company of some of nature's most compelling elements. I zipped up my puff and warmed my hands with my breath as the winds swirled about singing sweet melodies. My gaze fixated to the south and I could see a thick, dense fog settle below the treeline blanketing everything but the peaks of the surrounding mountains and the higher ridge lines. Surely it was warmer down below. The cirques and aretes on the face behind me were covered with snow and ice and below the surface, rushing waters made their way downstream, racing the season's end. The water carved out beautifully braided streams painting the snowfields with intricate patterns. I could hear the melt water trickling over the volcanic rock that formed the mountain I stood upon. Ice broke from the glacial walls sending cacophonous tremors of noise that bounced and bounded across every molecule of air. The scent of fall filled my nostrils. My skin tingled from the warmth of the sun despite the chill in the air. The crunch of snow beneath my feet reminded me of my direction, The songs of the distant birds reminded me of the life that surrounded me. Every element with purpose, moving in rhythm together, in a perfect equilibrium.
I felt awake, alive and consciously connected. I felt freedom. Mountains have a way of doing that. The grandness of exposure, the unpredictable nature of weather-- unforgiving and yet so very humbling. Mountains speak words that demand appreciation, protection and care and when I listen, I understand.
From my vantage, I could see the curvature of the Earth. With my eyes closed, I imagined my arms wrapped around the distant horizon in an embrace that warmed my blood and kept my heart beating.
The alpine vantage shifted my disposition and I envisioned myself swimming in the sky and glissading down snowfields to sun rays and the clouds delivering my dreams.
Everything was calm in me. "Relax into the world. You are forever free"
Looking closely at the human experience of life, it mirrors many things in nature;
The ebbing and flowing of rivers- ebb in uncertainty and hesitation and flow with courage, drive and innovation.
The rising and setting of the sun- rise with an open, free and imaginative heart and set in fear, sadness, darkness.
The blossoms in the spring and the decay of life in the fall-grow with new opportunities, new life, new love and decay in loss and letting go.
The cycle of our existence is always in motion. Each passage of a moment brings with it the beginning of something new. So live with life. Trust in your spirit. Be with your actions. Time will continue to pass and as it does, change and grow in life and love, in harmony with nature.
"To know the sublime by experience."
The sun shines magnificently on the western face of the hills. High on the eastern ridges, the surrounding grasses and brush radiate gold. Inland, it's dry and warm but soon, the fog would settle in from the coast and encroach the nearby valleys, suffocating the slopes with it's gentle and mystified thrum and disseminate an abundance of moisture. I anticipate the accompaniment of a cool and brisk breeze. For that, I am pleased.
...
The sage and coyote brush that blanket the hills appear damp. The stalks of the wild mustard swing back and forth across the trail. I blaze through and my legs brush up against the wet stalks, leaving a trail of moisture on my skin. I see many rabbits poking in and out of the brush and the quails scatter around in a frantic rush in the foreground. The first of many climbs has me already breathing deeply but I don't mind. The flora has come to life and the sweetened aroma of the sages and lavender that surround me seem to percolate through my pores.
...
Foot traffic is relatively non-existent during my evening traverse in the headlands. Miles and miles with nothing but the melody of the wind. With the fog settled in, the greens of the chaparral and brush appear wildly vivid. My gaze jumps around in a whirl with every bend in the trail, as each pocket, valley and ridge appear unalike. The patterned hues and topography only encourage my curiosity. I discover that with my attention focused on the external, I lose consciousness and minutes pass until I finally come to. Awakened in moments of peace and solitude.
The subliminal beauty of life on the trail.
Location: Marin Headlands, Rodeo Valley, Tennessee Valley
Trails: Old Springs, Wolf Ridge, Miwok, Coastal, SCA, Bobcat
Thoughts, sounds, images, everything coming and going and coming again. It can be quite tiresome, the lawlessness and misdirection of thought.
I sat quietly on a ridge that faced westward. The sun still high in the sky peaked through breaks in the fog. It's warmth quite contrasting to the chill I felt from the cool air surging up the hill's face. The wind raged with such a force that it rushed past me in an encompassing whoosh. The frenzied wind whizzed with a constant hum that brought harmony to the world surrounding me.
I focused my attention on a single grain of sand that jumped, rolled and bounded in the wind and I quite honestly felt that I was dancing in rhythm with it.
I fixated my gaze at a cresting wave a few meters off-shore. The wave's lip pursed and curled towards me and as it did, broke in an avalanche of churning white water that raced to shore. Strangely, I heard it's crackle and splurge so vividly as it pelted the rugged and broken rocky shore; I heard it fizzle out like the sizzling from a greased up pan over an open flame until it rejoined the harmonizing hum of that raging wind.
The fog rolled in and greeted the patient birds enthusiastically rustling their feathers from the tickle of moisture in the air.
The ceremonious moaning of the fog horns welcomed ships excited at the site of the Golden Gate after weeks of fighting the torment of the open sea. The continuous mumbling so soothing that it too suited my surroundings and joined in melody with the sand, the waves and the birds.
I felt calm then. Stepping outside of the voice in my head I no longer felt the interference of thought. With an open mind, I could shape myself to the present with a confounding coming together. A beautiful SYMPHONY of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch.
Nature has the power to open up an internal awareness that connects us to the present moment. In the present moment, you allow yourself the space to feel everything free of conflicting thought and emotion. Free of worry, full of promise.
Escape the voice in your head. Get lost in nature. Create your symphony.
She calmly lets go of her hold to the shore, being pulled by the moon with an even greater force than she. Though she means not to disturb, her gentle farewell echoes a rippling cacophony off the red-green twisted metamorphic rock walls. The roar, though loud, is steady and brings a sense of calmness to the moment. It moves in a mesmerizing and soothing rhythm with no feeling of opposition. Everything in equilibrium.
~
Seals and sea lions play in her wake while pods of pelicans fly gracefully above. The world wakes from the early morning call of the watchful ravens who rest peacefully along her exposed shores. A dense marine layer draws in over her surface, forming a mystical fog that rolls over the beaches and up the western slopes of the King Mountain Range. The light from the sun warps around the pines on the ridge and breaks through that fog in a craggy glistening glow.
Oh the beauty of the sea ~
Painting by Nancy I. Foster. This painting captures the essence of 'Awakening,' inspired by an evening run through the Presidio, SF, CA.
The southward facing slope was dark and cool, with an inclination so steep that the light seemed to hit the summit of the climb tangentially. The sun’s rays stretched out towards the sky with definite purpose of reaching infinity.. or so it seemed. No light would touch the path in front of me. I was feeling a bit anxious. The summit was my destination but there seemed to be so much distance my tired legs had to cover and there was an overwhelming fatigue surging through me. I started to question my ability and I almost feared each next step. I wasn’t certain the summit was mine. I nearly stopped dead in my tracks from the feelings of doubt and defeat.
Really, my tiredness was out of proportion. Exploited and exposed and recognized in overreaction. I thought of excuses, reasons why I was tired, why I didn't need to continue.
But then I remembered something very powerful and proceeded to ask myself a few simple questions. ‘Can I dis-identify with the pain and tiredness I am feeling?’ ‘Can I stay in the present?’ 'If I do, how will I feel? How will my body, or my mind, react?'
I allowed myself to experience that ‘feeling’ of exhaustion. Experiencing it, I recognized its formlessness within me. With no form, it didn’t exist. My energy shifted.
With a new sense of strength and a bit of urgency, I pounded out the last of the climb. I no longer dreaded the distance and the summit happened upon me in what felt like seconds. Just as I peaked, I felt the sun warm my skin. The light bounced in front of me while my eyes adjusted and regained focus from the quick shift in the visible spectrum. The thick groves of eucalyptus and cypress danced in the breeze and the light glimmered transiently between the trees branches. Long dark shadows undulated along the path in front of me. Everything appeared vibrant. The noises, strikingly loud. I could hear the wind rush past every follicle of hair extending from my ears. My breath danced in rhythm with my steps and the birds were singing my name.
I felt awake. Alive. Content. At ease... everything as effortless as could be. That is the journey of AWAKENING.
The Coastal Trail, Marin Headlands, California
A crow floated in the air over the rocky cliff like he was dangling on a string from the sky. I watched him for a while, as the trail ahead of me meandered in giant S shapes that reconnected me to him on a few occasions. I wondered what he saw out there in the vast waters of the pacific. The ocean looked calm from high on the cliff and the rushing sounds of the headwind drowned out every noise, bringing a sense of peace to the moment. Perhaps the crow felt that peace too.
The waves on the shore a few hundred feet below were telling a different story though. They pounded the sand and rock, ferociously disgorging water in every direction. I was glad I wasn’t floating up there with the crow, or fighting with the waves down below. I liked my feet on the ground, the place in between.
The trail was muddy. I sloshed and slid over rocks, careful to take small methodical steps. This added technical terrain was welcomed and gave me something to concentrate on. After some time, I started to understand my connection to the ground’s surface. I could feel when I needed to pull back or could loosen the restraint and push forward. I felt a connection, and no longer was I at the mercy of the slick surface. I lost myself in the run. Minutes passed in what felt like seconds.
A peak, off into the distance, looked exciting and treacherous. I picked that space as my next destination. A few more minutes of climbing, then the trail gently gave way. With bounding steps, I loosened up and opened my arms, embracing the path in front of me. I eventually made it to the tip of the peak and when I did, stood just near its edge. Wind rushed up the rock’s contour and when it broke the surface, billowed out, ever expanding into the air surrounding me and with such force, it nearly knocked me off my feet. I took a few more seconds to admire the beauty surrounding me. Looking south, the shoreline turned concave to convex to concave again and I could just barely see through the fog the tower atop twin peaks. The city was in sight. Looking north though, the broken geometry of the shoreline continued until I could see no further.
The air was chilly and moist and aroused so many lovely sweet scents I wanted to put them in a jar and carry them with me forever. So sweet I thought, I’ll just meet the trail again tomorrow.
There is so much noise. Exciting a tune of melodic beats that recounts stories of happiness, sadness, fear, confusion, unrest. Nothing feels right. No clarity, just an obscure and ambiguous fogginess. An overwhelming feeling of unease. Sensing the unrest, you begin the search for something to steady the racing thoughts and turn the doubts to undeniable convictions. Funny, that just when the frantic search begins, it is realized that here is the only place to feel the calm and understand the comprehensible and now is the only time that actually feels right. The frantic search always leads to a never ending truth. The truth that the search never leads to anything. The search causes you to lose sight of everything.
Embrace here. Love now. Be free of worry. What you know now, is all that you need to know. What you feel now, that is real.
23 miles of mountains and undulating hills, the perfect training run for what I know will be my biggest feat yet, the North Face Endurance Challenge 50k in the Marin Headlands.
~ The clouds roll over the hills with a blanketing obscurity that, to the world outside, would appear forbidding and threatening. I understand it better. There is beauty beneath that unsettling whispered whiteness. The blanket there to keep out the unwanted and challenge only the wanderers and the curious of heart to step in. I want in so I take to the trails. It is a grueling 3,500 feet of climbing in six short miles. I reach the summit and continue my run between that pillowed whiteness and ever alive, but silently still, earthen forest floor. It feels as though I am warped in time and space. No view out, only the trail that lies ahead. The clouds around me scream with chaos and winds rush with violent rage up the sloping crags. Pellets of rain patter my skin and dampen my clothes. A shivering cold pulses through my veins and my fingers slowly turn white and numb. I curl my fingers into a cup and with a deep breath in, I slowly exhale the warm air from my lungs out, trying to regain some sensation. There is no feeling yet. I have no choice but to continue on. I pass relics of a lost world. A train used to traverse the mountain side in the very early 1900’s but for only a couple of decades. These wet slopes in the winter time often gave way, releasing a slump earth flow of mud and rock. Man can’t win over the forces of her very mother, nature. A quick loop around the summit and it was a dodging plunge back down to the base, a scramble with quick, methodic steps over roots and rocks. I finally reach a smooth path ahead, which allows me a quick glance up and I notice I’ve already made it about 2/3 of the way down the mountain. The vantage from down below is quite contrasting and the steep slopes of the ridge look foreign and untouchable. It is calmer down here. The sun peaks through a break in the clouds and that bit of light sends a wave of warmth with it. No violent winds and pelleting rain. The peaceful calming silence brings with it so much noise. The deciduous trees around me are naked and their lost leaves litter the ground. I hear my every footstep. The leaves crunch beneath my feet like a crackling fire. The birds call aloud in melodic beats and for a minute, I feel as though I can understand them. I’m awake, energized, and listening, to my body and my surroundings. 11 more miles to go…. And more to discover, that I know.
I hear the words of Edward Abbey ringing in my ears… I am “… hoping to learn something from it, to discover the significance in its form, to make a connection through its life with whatever falls beyond.”
Where can I find the strength? How long can I endure?! The answer lies within the significance of that run, the mountain, those trails. Pushing beyond the limits...
If suddenly curiosity strikes, wander, get lost and discover. When you feel a surge of energy, excite it. Don’t think. Don’t question. Just do. Act. Be. It’s new. It’s bold. Perhaps a bit terrifying. Some might say crazy. You wonder, how? and why? Can I? Should I? Is it even possible? Let me tell you, it is. Everything is possible. Embracing those moments that make you most vulnerable and feel most uncertain end up becoming the moments that steady you. The challenge brings strength, the uncertainty brings clarity, and the vulnerability brings confidence.
I didn’t know how I could make my journey to Zambia possible. It was time. It was money. It was a new place. A new lifestyle. Where would I fit in? Could I make a difference? Was it mine to even make? Those questions and that fear though, didn’t stop me from saying YES. My experiences in Africa compare to nothing else. I went seeking an adventure and a challenge. I wanted to live a life in service to others and to live simply. My journey was all of that and much more. My life became a cultural exchange and I learned of experiences and traditions that shocked me, that terrified me, and that saddened me but I learned of ones that also made me smile and laugh and were humbling. I have stories of failure, success, sickness, of doubt, denial, acceptance, resilience, pride, and hope and many of them not mine. All of these stories and experiences I hold deep in my heart. They have become a part of me. Africa has become a part of me because I said yes.
So I say to you, lead the life you’re given. Challenge the one you’re not. Do the bold. Be daring. Don’t settle until it feels right. When you say yes, a world of opportunity opens up and you just might start to see things through an entirely new and beautiful light.
This is a thank you to all of you who believed in me, who supported me, who gave me words of encouragement. There is a healthier and happier future for so many youthful lives in Africa. I am better. The world is better. Thank you.
And remember... EMBRACE THE UNUSUAL, THE FEARED, THE SOUGHT AFTER, THE DREAM. jmb
A brief reflection into the past 10 months:
Sometimes this life is hard. A lifestyle I’m not used to suddenly became my norm and I had to find comfort and happiness within it. At first, it broke me. It tore me down until I felt stripped of everything that once made me happy, that identified me. Not only did I see darkness, I felt it. But greatness can be found within any struggle and the only way to truly understand the high, is to experience the extreme low. The struggle forces the escape. The escape opens up the opportunity to engage, to wonder, to seek, to truly see and not only experience, but live. Eventually, I found that escape. With open eyes and an open heart, I could embrace. I began to love the things that identified my every day; the sounds of the pied crows in the early morning hours, the walk to the tuck shop where I bought my eggs and coke, and the fruit stands that lined the side of the road and the bananas I’d buy from them for nearly nothing. I embraced my love for a game, a game that undoubtedly shaped me into the woman I am today, with those who see it as a way of life. I could eventually accept the slow pace of African life and could accept the fact that yes, more times than not, this pace would drive me absolutely mad.
An excerpt from my journal on one particularly slow day….. “So much time. Endless amounts of time. Time to think. My mind seems to pull in every direction with thoughts that I can’t seem to make clear. One thought turns into ten and I seem to lose where one thought began and where the other ends. Sometimes too much time isn’t a good thing, though people like to tell me it is. They say it’s hard to come by. I don’t like free time. I like freedom. But free time doesn’t feel like freedom. Not here. It feels like prison. Where does excitement meet free time? It doesn’t and it never will. Free time is boring and it haunts. At least, that’s how I feel right now.”
I loved the sun when it was shining, perhaps not the heat that came along with it, and the long thunders that accompanied the rains during the rainy season. I began to love everything that set Zambia apart from the rest of the world; the brightly colored and lively patterned chitenges that seemed to identify the woman, the kindness of a stranger, the smokey and dusty air, the chaotic markets, the terrible directions, the simple sayings, the love for braais, the integration of everyone in a place no matter their level on the socioeconomic scale, and sometimes I even loved being called a mzungu. I grew to love the fact that I could feel so out of place yet in place at the same time. I appreciate a simple life and have discovered how unnecessary some necessities truly are. I think there is a love for this culture somewhere inside of me, though it may be difficult to unveil at first. Perhaps that love is rooted in the fact that this culture is just as beautiful and fruitful to those who live it as my culture is to me.
There are days when I still retreat to that all too familiar dark and dreary place. Where the strangeness of my here and now makes me long for the comfort and familiarity of my home, my family and my friends. This darkness though has given me the opportunity to rise up, the courage to face the challenge, to learn from it and to grow stronger. That, I am truly thankful for.
~The waves come crashing in, unexpectedly, foaming at the mouth. Just when things felt calm, steady, stable, its torrents pull you and twist you around and around until you find yourself frantically searching for the way out or the way up. A place where there is light and air. But you’re trapped. It doesn’t frighten or threaten though. No means of escape but content in the snare. You understand the realm of possibility within such confines. You realize you don’t want out. Then, you see the glow. You reach towards the sky and find that you’re touching nothing, yet in a place feeling everything. The light is bright. Everything the light touches comes rushing in, transmitting signals that stimulate thought and action. Things remembered, things new. Somewhere between the beginning and the end. What at first seemed arbitrarily unexpected reveals itself in a patterned existence. The cycle, never ending and surprisingly, enlivening.~
The crash, the twist, the pull, the light, that glow, the remembered, the new. It is all a part of you and the 'cycle' of your existence.
Exciting times for Grassroot Soccer Zambia. Scroll through the pictures to catch all the action at Takamondo Primary School. Youth are participating in Practice 2 of the SKillz Core Curriculum. Participants learn that abstaining from sex is the most effective way to prevent HIV infection. By the end of the practice, participants will be able to explain why unprotected sex, multiple partners, older partners, sex for things, and alcohol abuse are all high risk behaviors and they will be able to describe the effects of HIV and AIDS on family members, friends, and community members.
