Vashonista Celebration

On the first of October, I flew to Seattle, Washington to spend five days with blogging friends that I first met in October of 2012 when we rented an old farmhouse on Vashon Island.  Since that first meeting, this time together at Lavender Hill has become a yearly event.  This year, since all of us are now retired, we decided to spend five days together rather than three.  We also decided that we would spend the time writing.  Deb from Cat Bird Scout was our facilitator for our writing.

During our writing time we worked from Pat Snider's model of workshop writing. We wrote eleven prompt writing during our time together.  We all agreed to share our last prompt writing on our blogs.

The Prompt

Deb read to us Mary Oliver's Poem The Summer Day.  If you have never read this wonderful poem, I am included it here:



Once Deb had finished reading the poem, she gave us the last line of this poem as our writing prompt:

What is it that you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?

A Reflection on The Prompt

Sometime assigned writing prompts bring up feelings which the writer wishes to not address in writing.  Such was the case for me that day.  This particular poem had been used on the funeral program of one lost too soon, of one I had loved and admired greatly.  I cut the poem from the funeral program and framed it as a reminder of the importance of that last line when considering the days we have left in this life.  

On this particular day when we were given this particular writing prompt, I had just received word that two men I had gone to school with had just passed away.  One had been married to a friend from my high school group before her untimely passing five years ago.  The other I had not know well, but my husband had, and he was the much loved older brother of a friend of mine.  Needless to say, the poem, the last line, and the prompt hit a very somber note with me.  The deaths of two from my school days seemed to prompt a reminder that I have fewer day before me than I do behind me.  

I decided to look back to my youth and see how I had used the days I have been given up until this point.  Had I used my time wisely?  What were my early goals for life?  How did the goals I had from my early days influence the decisions I have made through seven decades of living?  

The Writing Piece

Trees lined the sidewalks that led from the college dorms to the main campus.  Those canopy covered walks lead to the future for which I am preparing, I thought as I headed out that first day towards my very first college class.  Reality has hit.  I'm here for real.  Frosh orientation is thankfully over.  It seemed so silly.  I guess we are stuck with wearing these horrible beanies for a few days yet. I really hated the silly games we had to play during orientation.  Who thought we would like to play "Pass the orange under your chin to the guy behind you."  That, and high school, are all behind me now.  I have actually matriculated.  How's that for using a real college word?  I have my college map, and I know where Bru-Inn is.  I'll get a coke there after class.  Maybe I will make a new friend or two at the student center, but it is a bit scary to walk in by myself.  Maybe my roommate will meet me.  Thankfully, she and I are walking to our first classes together.

I belong here.  It took some doing.  I won the scholarship which is paying my tuition.  I convinced my father that I would make good on the investment he is making in my future.  Seventy dollars a quarter is covered by the tuition scholarship I won.  The board and room of $150 a quarter will partially be paid by the salary I will make working in the dining hall two meals a day.  I worked all summer to buy my clothes and help pay for books.  I know this is a sacrifice for my parents, but I am working and helping all I can.  

I will be a teacher.  I am here to prepare for that profession.  I'm not in any hurry to get married.  I will someday, but not now.  I want to be independent.  I want to rely on my own ability to make my way in this life.  

Later, when the preparation for a profession is done, and I have met the right person, I want to marry. I want to teach after I am married, but I also want five kids.  That means I hope to also have house, a garden, a place where my children and children after them will come for family dinners when they are grown.  I have my future all planned out.

The vision from those long ago days wasn't too far off.

The vision served as a blueprint for the decisions I made as I moved into the future.

I accomplished those goals.

Life has sent me many curves along the way.

Certainly, I never saw many of them coming, 

but

in the end,

if today were the end,

I'm happy with my life.

I've lived this wild and precious life well.

Read the posts from other Vashonistas at:

Deb at Cat Bird Scout

Sandi at Flying Into the Light

DJan at D-Janity

Jann at Benchmark 60

Linda at Thoughts of a Bag Lady in Waiting

Basking in the Glow of a Golden Celebration

Fading summer flowers,

spent,

and long past their days of glorious blooming,

signaled that the last days of summer had truly arrived.

Are these flowers a metaphor for the weekend?

I wondered as I hurried out of the house and headed off for a weekend

 with my high school girlfriends.

Long in the planning, the weekend celebration of our

70th birthdays

had finally arrived.

I had dubbed this celebration:
Our Senior Trip.

At age seventy, some may think my girlfriends and I had reached an age beyond the blooming days of youth where there is not much to celebrate.

In our hearts we are still young girls,
but,

we have somehow reached the entry year to our eighth decade.

We came together 

to bask 

in the glory of reaching a milestone that none of knew could be so rewarding.

bask/

verb

1. lie exposed to warmth and light, typically from the sun, for relaxation and pleasure

   revel in and make the most of (something pleasing).*

The Trip to the Celebration

A few of us decided to make the trip from the Colorado Front Range of the Rockies
to the Western Slope of Colorado
via the train.

The train left Denver at 8:05 a.m. for a five hour and forty-eight minute trip
through the Colorado Mountains.

I had not taken this particular train route since my sophomore year in college.

That was fifty years ago.

The entire trip promised to be a nostalgic one for me.

Jim got up early and drove me to Denver where I met up with the other six girls traveling by train.  

We were all very excited.

This railroader's daughter loves a train ride.

As the train wove its way up and over the mountains, a metaphor to describe the weekend began to take shape in my mind:

All is golden.

My History with the Group

I had the good fortune to join the Girls of '63 when I first attended Pueblo East High School during my freshman year in high school.  Pueblo East was a brand new high school in 1959 when my father, an agent for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, was transferred from Colorado Springs to Pueblo. I was a very frightened fifteen year old, naive and quite young looking for my age, when I was uprooted from my junior high and transplanted to the high school setting in November of '59.  I had lived in the same house all of my life before that move.  I had known my classmates since kindergarten.

When I walked through those doors of East High, I had no idea that I would make some the most important friendships of my life in the three years I proudly wore gold and white and cheered for the Eagles.  Immediately, the girls from my class began to make me feel welcome by inviting me to school events, or seeking me out to sit with the girls at lunch.  Soon I was attending sleepovers where we laughed all night and told each other stories about our lives.

One of the girls from this group introduced me to my husband.  Her sixteenth birthday(click to read this story.) was our first date.  Now, all these years later, she would be my roommate for our 70th birthday celebration.  

Twenty-two of us gathered to celebrate our 70th birthdays together in the beautiful Glenwood Springs, Colorado.  Yes, much has changed over the years, but in so many ways, nothing has changed.  Those friendships deeply rooted in our youth have flourished over the years as some have gathered quarterly for over twenty-five years.  We missed those who could not attend dearly and thought of them often.

It was my good fortune to join the lunch group about six years ago when I finally connected with some of the stalwarts of the group and learned of the next gathering.  I learned the truth of this quote below the first time I attended one of the lunches.  

This quote also came to mind so often during the weekend:
Your heart and my heart are very old friends.

~ Hafiz

The Celebration

We came together to celebrate attaining the age of seventy.  

We came together to celebrate friendship, 

perseverance,

 roots, 

heritage, 

our histories, 

our loyalty to each other, 

and each individual person.  

We came together to remember those we have lost.

 We shared stories of our lives while we have been living life.

We laughed.

We cried.

We came together to affirm our love for each other.  

We came together to express our support for each other as we move towards the future.

We are our own unique group of Golden Girls.

Here are some photos from our glorious birthday party:

We arrived at the beautiful old railroad station in Glenwood Springs, Colorado.  Our first task was to determine just how we would cross the river to our lodge on the other side.

We navigated the long pedestrian bridge and made it to our destination.

No taxi for us!

We all stayed at the Glenwood Hot Springs Lodge. We had free access to the hot springs pool and a free fabulous breakfast at the hot springs every morning.  Our rooms were wonderful.  We even were able to have a large ballroom for our birthday dinner on Saturday night.  Our fabulous planner, a Glenwood Springs resident with great connections, JG (In the flowered top) made all arrangements for us.  She did an outstanding job.  She is a party planner extraordinaire.  I also think she is  the original Energizer Bunny.  Where does this girl get her energy?

Our Party Planner
JG

The first night, we donned our Girls of '63 shirts for group photos that were taken by a professional photographer.  The poor woman charged with taking our photos must have felt like she was herding cats.  She had excellent "classroom management skills."  Many photos were taken.We had groups that included all those whom had attended kindergarten through graduation together.  I think about nine or ten of the girls were in this group.  That alone is an amazing thing.  About five or six of us joined the Class of '63 during high school.  I alone, did not graduate with the group because my father was transferred to Leadville, Colorado just before my senior year.  

After photos, we walked through town to go to a vaudeville show which was excellent and exceeded all expectations for entertainment for the evening.  As we walked through town we garnered quite a few reactions.  "Hey, were you all born in '63?"  I said I'd take someone believing we all were 63.  A passenger in a passing car built our egos with a whistle.  (Hey, it's been a long time since we've had a guy whistle at us.)

Saturday night we had our big birthday dinner.  So many did so much work to get everything ready, but JG outdid herself.  A florist by trade, she made our table centerpieces and dressed the tables in our school colors of gold and white.  Yearbooks and memory books were on each table.  We had individual table place markers with a picture from our high school yearbook.  SP made each of us a rose bookmark.  JG made the fabulous birthday cake.  

A history of our group was read by PS.  As is our tradition, we raised our margaritas as a toast to those we have lost too soon.  We wept as a list of all of the fallen Eagles from our class was read.  Too many are gone too soon.  A few of the girls went to great effort to set up a tree with photos of all of our fallen Eagles.

The weekend was all about friendship.

I have the best girlfriends.

I am so blessed.

My Girlfriends
Pure Gold

Some of my readers have remarked that they are amazed that this group has met on a consistent basis.  Truly, it is a remarkable feat in this day and age to have a group stay so connected for all these years. We owe PS for the gift of this group.  She is our organizer.  She keeps us together by setting the dates for our meetings in advance.  Those who can come to events, do so.  Those who can't come try to attend the next one.

The hostess for each gathering usually has a co-hostess who serves as a backup hostess just in case of emergency.  The hostess provides the main dish.  PS makes sure we have desserts, salads, and sides assigned to all attending. She even maintains a group photo album that includes a group photo from every gathering since the very first one.  PS had the vision of a 70th birthday party, and we actually made it a reality!  Thank you, PS!

PS reading the history of our group

The setting for the celebration could not have been better.  We had access to the healing waters of the Glenwood Springs Hot Springs for three glorious days.  The warm natural springs provided just the right place for bonding again with each other.  One day, I'm sure we spent at least three hours in the afternoon just standing in a large circle in the water, or sitting on sides with our feet soaking in the warm water, talking.  Yes, there was a lot of talking, talking, talking, and much laughter.  We cried a bit.  We marveled at the stories of our lives.  We were astounded that we actually had these hours together for such deep, reflective, sharing.  

The setting
DC & KM friends for 65 years

I felt younger and healthier after a weekend of soaking in the healing waters for hours on end.  Was this place the fountain of youth?  I remember looking up at the beautiful Colorado blue sky, feeling the warmth of the sun on my shoulders, and gazing into the beautiful lined faces and sparkling eyes of my lifelong friends and thinking that life just doesn't get much better than this.

Too soon, it was time to go home. 

Throughout the weekend, we shared hugs, 

held hands, 

promised to be there to end.

DDI commented that next great challenge as a group would be loss of hearing.

Yes, we had a hard time hearing at times.

That is the reality of celebrating 70!

We had soaked up rays of sun and healing waters.

We relaxed and experienced great pleasure.

We reveled in, and

 made the most of

celebrating our 70th birthdays.

We basked in the warmth of our golden friendships.

* Dictionary.com

Savoring Those Final Summer Days

Why do we rush the seasons?

Am I wrong when I remember that seasons during  my childhood were more clearly defined?
These days, children go back to school in August while we didn't go back to school until
after Labor Day.

While the summer flowers are blooming, the grocery stores start selling mums.
Starbucks starts selling lattes flavored with pumpkin before I'm ready to think of fall.
The Halloween displays come out in August.
The retail stores must hurry with these displays because soon we will see Christmas displays.

The autumnal equinox arrives at 4:21 a.m. EST on September 24, 2015.

Until then, it is technically still summer.

That means:
for me

the sandals can still be worn, weather permitting,

as can the sun dresses,

the shorts,

the cropped pants.

I've put away the white pants and the white shoes.

This is reflection of those rules of proper seasonal attire  that are deeply ingrained in my head:
no white shoes or pants should be worn
 before Memorial Day 

or after Labor Day.

Until September 24, it is still summer in my world.

I'm not ready to move into fall yet.

My mind and my body just aren't ready to make that transition.

Yes, just as I wrote in my last blog post, I am still on the cusp of autumn.

Cusp

[kuhsp] 

noun

a point that marks the beginning of a change

a point of transition: turning point, edge, verge

Don't rush me.

I'm not ready to make the transition.

I do admit that  transitions are difficult for me.

Today, soon after my arrival to her office, my therapist asked me an important question,

"What are you doing to prepare for the fall and winter days that are coming?"

Has she been reading my mind?

Actually, I've been giving this topic a lot of thought.

I know myself well enough to know that I must prepare for the coming days when I can't enjoy the green grass, the leafy trees, and the beautiful flowers of summer.
I must plan for those days when I feel housebound.
Those days when the snow flies, the wind blows, and the roads are covered with ice are not days that I particularly enjoy.

What am I doing to make the transition into the seasons that are coming?

This is what I am doing:

I am hanging on to summer as long as I can!

Intentional self-care does not come naturally to me.

Summer is a time when I find it easier to adopt healthier habits.
Do you find that is true?
Here are some things I'm doing to help me transition from summer into fall in a healthy way.

Mental/Emotional Self-Care

Photographs of a favorite summertime vignette are captured to remind the heart during the dark days that no doubt will come in the following months that summer will again make its appearance.

Journaling is important part of maintaining my emotional and mental health.
I love to journal on the back deck in the summer.
I love to see shadows of leaves across the page as I write.
I always miss my outdoor writing times when summer is over.

Physical Self-Care

This season, the one we are still in, is a great time to try and get in shape.

I'm exercising outside as much as I can.
We live in the most wonderful area for walking.

See what I'm talking about.
Here is a wonderful example of the hoodoo rocks or mushroom rocks that crop up all over my neighborhood.
I never tire of looking at these beautiful rocks.
Look at the interesting shapes and textures.
Don't you just love my hoodoos?

Here is an example of another hoodoo  in my area.
Notice how the colors in the formation are different from the  colors in the example above.
I love this rock.
I call her my "Cat Rock."
I like to think she keeps a protective eye on our neighborhood.

Besides walking, as a preparation for when I can no longer exercise outside,
I am trying to get in the habit of making it to the club more often.
The old hip is acting up, so I have traded Zumba Gold for water exercise.
Last week I tried Aqua Zumba.
What fun!
After class, dripping wet, I decided to dry off by lounging outside in the sun.
As a nod to those days when I was a sun worshiper,
I actually spent ten or fifteen minutes just soaking up the bright sunshine before I had to make a hasty retreat to the shade.
This is another way I am preparing for the cooler days ahead.
I am soaking up as much sun as I can while I can.

I'm also looking after my past medical issues.
I just had the five month check on my pacemaker.
My life is greatly improved since that little device was implanted in my body.
According to the last check, I have ten years left on the battery, and
I'm using it 75% of the time.
I had no events of AFib in the last two months.
Technology is wonderful.
That little device helped to make my summer a great one.

Lifestyle

I truly am trying to establish a schedule.
I do better when I have to live by the bell.
Teaching schedules gave me that discipline.
I struggle to adopt my own schedule when one is not established for me.
It has been an even larger challenge to learn to adopt a schedule
now that my husband is working retail.
Some of you may remember that my husband, after working in education for forty-two years,
decided to begin a new career by working for Apple.
He loves his job, and his job is good for him, so I am trying to adjust to a schedule that changes
day by day.
Some days he works days.
Others he works nights.
I find it nearly impossible to establish regular times for the daily tasks of living.
Since I need a time schedule that is fairly routine,
I'm still working on finding balance in this area of my life.
In the meantime,
Boston and I mark time while he is gone by walking together in the evening,
or I read or write with Boston at my feet.
Make no assumptions that I have become the number one person in Boston's life;
he still won't eat while his master is gone,
and when his master comes home there is a love fest that takes place between these two.

I'm learning lessons from my husband during this season.
Fulfilling work remains important even during the retirement years.
As I leave summer, I am pondering this life lesson.

Spiritual Self-Care

One of the greatest blessing of the past year has been the time I have spent with a very special group of ladies from my church.
We call ourselves Monica Moms.
St. Augustine's mother was named Monica.
That is where the name for our group comes from.
We pray for our children as she prayed for her son.
Every other Wednesday, we meet for two or three hours to lift up our adult children in prayer.
The time I spend with these women in prayer are times I will forever treasure.

I'm blessed to have a mother who prays for me.
Just recently, I called her and when she answered the phone, she said,
"I was just praying for you."
She is nearly 100 years old, but she continues to pray for me.
I hope to have many more summers to pray for my children.
I rest in the assurance that those prayers will forever be found at the Throne of Grace.

People Support

Summer is a perfect time for lunch with friends.
I've enjoyed many long lunches with great friends this summer.

I'm ending off the summer by going on a three day trip with my high school girl friends.
It is our big 70th birthday bash!
We have talked about and planned this trip for years.
We wanted to enter the seventh decade of our lives in a big way.
We are going on our "senior trip."
Watch out.
The Girls of '63 are heading to Glenwood Springs, Colorado.

So, during these last days summer,
I'll be off traveling.

First,
I'm getting on a train with a bunch of the girls.
That alone will be a great adventure.
Once we all arrive at our destination,
we have three days of a very full agenda planned.

I think I'm capping off the summer of 2015 in grand style.


See you all in the fall.
Enjoy the final days of summer.

A Saturday Morning on the Cusp of Autumn

Autumn,

it's been in the air.

I sense a meteorological shift that I usually don't feel this early in the year at this altitude.

Some mornings or evenings, the air is so cool and crisp, I think I am again living in the mountains.

"Close enough," I think to myself.

While I don't live in the mountains,

I live in the next best place:  in a valley that begins at the foothills of the Front Range of Colorado.

Hints of atmospheric changes surround me.

  Fresh cool air soothes me as I fall asleep at night.

The sounds  of the six o'clock bells from the church at

 Mount St. Francis,  

carried a mile down the valley to my house by gentle valley breezes, 

awaken me each morning at 6:00 as they drift into an open bedroom window.

For many school has begun.

Autumn is on its way.

We are on the cusp of autumn.

Cusp

[kuhsp] 

noun

a point that marks the beginning of a change

a point of transition: turning point, edge, verge

Transition is never an easy thing for me.

I've never been able to transition from one point of time to another easily.

I stay firmly planted in the time in which I find myself,

even as I wish to transition to another time.
I'm in no hurry to transition to autumn.

I recognize that the days and nights are changing.

Another season will soon draw to an end, and we will be entering another one.

Today, a Saturday on the cusp of autumn,

wishing to hang on to the few summer days we have left,

I ask my husband if he would like to go to the 

Farm and Art Market at the Margarita at Pine Creek.

It is no secret that I love going to the Margarita at Pine Creek.
It is only two miles from my house.

One of my favorite summertime things to do is to have breakfast outside on one of the patios for this restaurant on a Saturday.

It is unbelievable that today is the first time this year we have attended the Farmers' Market held here.

It is windy when we arrive.

We both are hungry, so we decide to eat before we shop for produce.

Jim knows what I love to eat on these special Saturday mornings:  artichoke and feta egg puffs.

"Of course I will also share some coffee cake with you." I say to him with a smile.
The coffee cake is also one of my favorite things.

Yum!

He orders my breakfast treat as I search for a table in the shade.

Tables are hard to find.

Tables in the shade are even harder to find.

I find us a place just as the wind really begins to kick-up.

One of the helpers comes over to the table and takes down the umbrella that provides shade.

She says, "This wind is making this table a dangerous place with the umbrella up.  If you want shade, you may go into the lower patio."

Usually, I would want to be where the action is among all the other folks who are enjoying the ambiance of The Margarita.

Today, there is no live band, so I really am quite happy about going to the patio where there is shade and no other people.

In this quiet and sheltered place,

one of my favorite places to be,

a place where I have memories of meals shared with loved ones and dear friends,

I am able to eat, reflect, and takes photos without any distractions.

I find a table under a rustic canopy made of native tree branches.

I admire the unique designs of the building that houses the main restaurant.

"I love this place."

I think to myself,

These summer Saturday mornings are nearly gone for this year; enjoy the gift of today in this place.

I admire the ponderosa pine that gives us additional shelter from the sun.
The wind has stopped.

"Look at the size of that ponderosa," I say to Jim.

I wonder how long it has been in this spot.

Gazing at the tree, and the perfect setting for a table,
I remember playing under a favorite tree during the carefree days of childhood.
 Inspired by the stories about pioneers and native American Indians,
my cousins, sister and I would build make-believe tepees under pine trees.

We would pretend we lived in the wild and lived under trees.

We would sweep pine needles into a pile, cover them with doll blankets and put our "babies" to bed.

I notice a delphinium planted in a pot and placed next to our table.

Note to self:  Next year think outside the box.  

Plant a delphinium in a pot on the porch where the deer can't get it.  

Sometimes we must look at things with a new slant 
if the way we have always done things is no longer working. 

After I have eaten, I go exploring with my iPhone camera.

I've been on the patio before, but it was always filled with people.
I'm excited to find all the great spots where great food can be enjoyed during lunch and dinner.

Nasturtiums growing in boxes create a nice background for this spot.

I've never seen this area before.

I guess the funkiness of design is what always fascinates me about The Margarita at Pine Creek.
Everywhere I looks, I see small touches that add to whimsical charm of this place.
See the dog footprints in the cement.
I love that.

We lingered at our table under the trees enjoying the surroundings and the beauty of the day.
A unique circumstance of a gust of wind had allowed us to have this private place to enjoy our breakfast today.
It was the perfect place to enjoy a late summer Saturday.

Too soon, I remember we came for produce,
so we made our way to the Farmers' Market in the area just below our quiet place of retreat.

The harvest is another reminder that summer is nearly over.
Autumn can't be far off.

Cusp

a noun: person, place or thing

Cusp - a place

Like it our not, summer is drawing to a close.
We are on the cusp of autumn.

This is a time of transition.
What will the next season bring?

I've Been Reading...

Summer is for reading.  

I remember when I was in high school, I could hardly wait to lose myself in a great novel.

I haven't changed.

I still love to lose myself in a great novel.  I wish I had kept a list of all the books I've read throughout my lifetime.  I did attempt to put a list together on Goodreads.  Then, I neglected putting in the latest book I finished because it felt too much like I had to write a book report.  I hated writing book reports in school.  I guess deep down inside I felt guilty when I used to assign book reports when I was teaching.  I could feel my students' pain at times.  Book reports were a necessary evil in the high school English/Language Arts classroom.  It was an expectation that students read and then write about what they read.  

I have a few friends whom I can always count on to ask, "What are you reading?"  I love to discuss the books I read.  And I love hearing what other people are reading.  Only reading itself is better than having a good book talk.    I guess one of the things I miss the most about not being in the classroom either as a student or as a teacher is "book talks."  Even though I might really dislike writing about a book, there is also a bit of an empty feeling that I get if I can't talk about a book I just finished.  So, here is a bit about what I've been reading.  

I've been hooked on Susan Howatch lately.

The Rich Are Different by Susan Howatch

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

How did I miss reading Susan Howatch until now?  I've just finished reading three of her novels.  Now, I am hooked on reading her books.

As another reviewier has said, "reading The Rich Are Different made me remember why I love reading." This was true for me also.  I love reading when I've found a great story that allows me to become immersed in the book. I find it hard to put the book down.  I think about the story lines.  I think about the characters as if I know them personally.

Early in this story Howatch introduces the reader to Paul Van Zale, a millionaire investment banker from New York who during the 1920's has gone to England on bank business.  He is a flawed, but powerful character, whose worst fear is being known for the weakness he must hide from the world. He is a man interested in the classics.  Powerful, ruthless, rich, he constantly worries about appearances.  He longs for intimacy, but sees relationships as transactional only.  He is a banker after all.

While he is in England, he is introduced to Dinah Slade,  a much younger damsel in distress.  By a wily scheme she is presented to him in the most creative and fantastical way.  She is smart, ambitious, and also interested in the classics.  Paul Van Zale has met his match in Dinah.  Cunning and intelligent, she is destined to become a rich and powerful woman in her own right.  She just needs to find someone to fund her ventures and save her ancestral  home. Paul is that person.  Duplicitous to the core, Paul can't be trusted, and he cannot trust.  This truth provides a foundation for a classic struggle that will be a theme  that forms one of the central plot lines in the book.   Will Paul ultimately solve Dinah's problem of saving her beloved home and heritage, or will she in the end be the only one who can save it?

Some have compared the story to a retelling of the story of Julius Caesar, Mark Anthony, and Cleopatra.  Certainly all the  themes of greed, ambition, love, and deception are found in the story.

This story is timeless.  The setting is brilliant because where can one tell a story about greed, excesses, and amoral behavior better than in the setting of the banking industry during the 1920's.  The characters are developed excellently as the narrator changes throughout the novel.  In the beginning, the story is told through Paul Van Zale.  Then, the other main characters develop the telling of the story through their voices.  I admire Howatch's character development.  She is the master at doing that.

She weaves together a story so well that even through one is sad to finish the book, one is also deeply satisfied by the reading of a good piece of writing.  Few write sagas as well as Susan Howatch.

Now, I am off to read the next book in this series.  I am hooked.

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Celebrating Colorado

Colorado turned 139 years old this past Saturday.

We decided to celebrate both the birthday and the State of Colorado by visiting one of her treasures:

Red Rock Canyon Open Space.

I'd never been to Red Rock Canyon Open Space before.

In fact, as a third generation Coloradan, born and raised in the City of Colorado Springs, I am ashamed to say I'd never even heard of Red Rock Canyon Open Space until a few years ago.

I grew up spending many happy days throughout my childhood exploring Garden of the Gods.

I couldn't even tell you how many times in my lifetime I have driven past the 787 acres that comprise this spectacular treasure tucked unnoticed in the canyon along side of Highway 24.

How did I miss it?

How did I not know it was there?

The short answer is that until the early 2000's it was owned for over eighty years by a private family.
It was not on public lands.
It was private and inaccessible.

The story of how the City of Colorado Springs acquired this area will not be recounted here in this post, but I have provided a link for those of you whom might be interested in reading about about it.

Link:  Red Rock Canyon Open Space.

I wish my uncles were alive.

No doubt in their days of exploration of the Colorado Springs area during the 1920's and 1930's, I have every reason to speculate that they visited this place while looking for arrowheads and places to climb and explore.
They knew about such secret places.
They had explored them.
I doubt that rumors of a man with a gun protecting the place would have kept them out.
I just wish I could ask them about it.

This area, known as the "secret Garden of the Gods," is truly, as the article I linked for you says, 

a geological wonder.

If you have been to the Garden of the Gods, you have seen similar outcroppings of red sandstone rock as you will see in this open space.

In fact, both areas are one whole geographic ecosystem.

Only in modern times have they been viewed as separate systems.

I am not a geologist, though I wish I had studied more of this field, but the rock formations in my hometown have always fascinated me.  

Having never been to Red Rock Canyon Open Space,
Jim and I did not know what to expect when we set out for our adventure.

We tried to explore the area last summer when son Jonathan and grandson Atticus were here.

We only got a photo to commemorate the start of the hike when the rains came.

This year, we again took a few photos to commemorate the day and
hoped rain would not end our hike.

(Typical blogger activity: take photos for the blog at the start of any adventure.)

The smile is a real one.

Feeling well and energetic,
I was so excited to finally get out and do a hike with my man and my dog.

There is no better way to celebrate Colorado Day than by taking in her beauty 

with the ones you love.

Our first task was to choose a trail to explore.

We started down the path.

The day was warm, but the clouds were not threatening a storm.  

They provided a welcomed cloud cover from the sun.

I love that blue Colorado sky.

I love those red rocks.

Yes, Colorado is colorful.

Colorado means:  colored red.

Now you know how Colorado got her name.

Enjoy photos from our walk.

I believe this peaceful looking lake is not without its controversy.

It was built by the previous owners of the area to catch and store rain water.

That is against the law in the State of Colorado.

Colorado Water Laws are very strict.

Retaining pools are illegal.

Pools like these have been dry during periods of drought.

Spring rains caused them to flood and damage the surrounding trails.

On this day, the pool was beautiful and serene.

You can read about the damage and the water controversy here if you are interested.

Look, the sky is changing.

That is a part of celebrating Colorado.

Her weather is quite unpredictable.

I honestly don't know what this monument is commemorating.

I failed to record it in my notes.

I was more interested in getting a photo of the Peak (Pikes Peak).

It is the distant mountain in the center of the photo.

This past spring many of the hiking trails in Red Rock Canyon Open Space were washed out by spring rains.

In fact, the area had just recently reopened after the trails were repaired.  

This waterlogged field, covered in natural grasses,  was quite marshy and wet.

Look closer.

Can you see the dragonfly?

(It's barely visible in the center of the photo.)

Dragonflies, symbols of change, 

a change in perspective and self-realization,

have been showing themselves to me on several long walks Jim and I have taken this summer.

They have become an important symbol of what I have been experiencing this year.

This self realization has at its source the type of change that comes from

mental

and 

emotional 

maturity,

and from the 

understanding 

of the deeper meaning of life.  

Dragonflies have become my symbol of the entry into my seventies.

I am seventy.

I am learning to embrace the changes in my life and in my perspective of life.

I am reminded how important this time of life is when I encounter unexpected sightings of the dragonfly.

They are so magical.

Their iridescence

 reminds me that it is good to end

one's self-centered illusions.

It is time to have

a clear vision of the realities of life.*

Live in the moment.

Live life to fullest in that moment.

   Few things are more healing to the mind and the soul than walking through areas where one can observe and reflect upon nature.

I recognize and acknowledge the awesome power that created this geological specimen.

Since my earliest days I have marveled at the trees that seem to grow out of rocks.
It is a reminder that while the soil may seem unfriendly,
and
it may appear as if nothing will grow in such circumstances,
there are examples all through nature that show us
that environment is not the only predictor of growth or of survival.
Life springs forth under the worst of circumstances.
I love the lessons of nature.

Colorado,
you give us much to celebrate.
I love this place, the place of my birth.
I'm so grateful to have this beauty just a few short miles from my home.

The hike ends with a reflection.

We have found a new place to explore and enjoy.
We will be back.

Jim and Boston posed for one final photo,

while I counted these two among the blessings of my day.

* Reflection on the dragonfly were recorded in my journal earlier this summer.  I don't know where I found these definitions to the meaning of the dragonfly.  No doubt they were found on some internet search.  I did not cite the reference before I wrote these line in my journal.