Florence, Ore, July 17 -- It’s raining here in Florence this morning. It’s kind of cozy sitting in the Mo, with rain hitting the roof and Mary Black singing in the background. Steve and I drove to Coos Bay last night and he met Kristin and Ryan. He proclaimed Ryan’s Vanilla Porter some of the best beer he’s ever had. At the restaurant we went to for dinner with the kids, he had a Black Butte Porter and said it paled in comparison. I am not a beer drinker, but even I thought the Vanilla Porter was good. GeeWhiz brewing. Ryan will enter some beers in the Coos County fair in a couple weeks. I have only ever heard rave reviews about his brewing abilities. He made all the beer for their reception. Steve asked if he would consider brewing professionally and Ryan thought that would take the fun out of a hobby he really enjoys. There is much to be said about doing something just for the sheer pleasure of doing a good job and sharing it with friends. Sometimes adding that “commercial” aspect and the pressures of making it pay financially ruin it.
Steve and I took Charlie to the beach a couple times. The first time we went to a little area on the Siuslaw River/Bay. The water dropped off quickly and the beach area was very narrow but Charlie managed to get very wet and very sandy. And then he would come back to where our chairs and mat were and head straight for Steve and shake sand all over him. It doesn’t sound that funny in the retelling, but I was laughing so hard at the two of them I couldn’t stand up. I used to take Charlie to the playground at St. Ignatius and taught him to go up onto the slide. Then I would slide down and he would run down right behind me, usually landing on me in the process. Charlie makes me laugh so hard, I become helpless laughing and giggling at him. Steve, strangely, has a very similar effect on me, and put the two together and it is better than any slapstick routine I’ve ever seen.
We drove up to Waldport and visited his fishing buddy, Ray, whom I met in Bend a couple weeks ago. Ray’s son Byron and his family were visiting from Arizona. They had gone out crabbing and caught 17 Dungeness crabs They cooked up the crab, some oysters they had bought, fried up a sea bass in beer batter, and we had a magnificent feast. Byron and his wife, Frankie, used some of the crab in a delicious chowder. I was going to make a blueberry pie to contribute to the feast but I didn’t have shortening or enough butter and then realized I hadn’t kept my rolling pin. Nice try. Motorhomes aren’t made for gourmet cooking. So we bought a turtle pie at Safeway. It was okay but nothing spectacular.
The next day we went to Heceta Beach just north of Florence. We have eaten so much good food the couple days he’s been here that we both needed a good long walk. And Charlie always needs a good long walk. I have been to beaches on the Pacific Coast from NW Washington to Mexico and Hawaii. It is not that unusual to see live starfish in tidepools but I have never seen a starfish on the beach. Yesterday we saw two Ochre Starfish. They were both dead, but they were just lying on the beach. We also saw a lightbulb that had floated up on the tide, apparently. What a random thing -- a lightbulb. When you see strange things, out of context or beyond your normal experience, it always makes you wonder. Especially if you are in a questing place. Are these signs? What do they mean. Is God telling me something? What could two starfish and a lightbulb possibly mean?
On the way back from the beach I drove us through a little community, nice little houses mostly built in the last 8 to 10 years. We picked up fliers for a couple that were for sale and then this morning went and looked at one of them. Totally random. Part of me has always wanted to live at the coast. That salt water in the blood thing, I guess. But I also love Central Oregon. I am just not yet feeling totally pulled by God in where I will settle, or at least I haven’t recognized it yet. Maybe I think when I find it a lightbulb will go off --- lightbulb . . . hmmm. Nor am I pulled in what I should do, other than write in some form or other. Steve and I have some very complementary skills in addition to having more things in common than I can keep track of. And I always spend so much time laughing when I am with him. But we also have some fairly deep spiritual/theological conversations. So where is this heading? I don’t know. We really only met in mid-April and have only gotten to know each other well in the past month. But we are also both seeking where God wants us to be and what God wants us to do and we agree that whatever that is is more important than anything else. We both have a deep sense of mission: what is God asking of us? We both lost our spouses, his from cancer six years ago. Why? It’s dangerous to imagine God’s hand in things when it really isn’t there. I’ve been there and done that a couple times in my life and it can take you off on wrong roads and get you lost quicker than wandering in the fog on the Oregon Coast.
I will go spend some time with my daughter in Coos Bay today. I am happy to see that she and Ryan have built a good life and seem contented. I have never wished anything for my children beyond that they be happy, satisfied with their life, have someone to love and who loves them. And that God have a role there. We’re still working on that part, God and I. I have always felt such a deep presence of God in my own life, despite the frustrations and anger and questions. The absence of God is something I can’t even imagine. I am so very thankful for the gift of faith passed onto me by my parents. John had that, too.
Tomorrow, July 18, would have been John and my 37th anniversary. Those dates (July 4th would have been his 59th birthday) get a bit easier every year. They are special opportunities to remember the good times, the blessings we shared, the gifts of our children, our families, our faith. This will be the first anniversary since he died that I am not living in the house we built together. But spending today with Kristin, and then seeing Karl this weekend will remind me of the true home we built together, the family we had and raised. There is that focus on those relationships again. They mean so much more than any “thing” ever will.
Well, time to get head down 101 to Coos Bay. Kristin wants me to help her sew a cape to wear for the new Harry Potter book release party. She also wants me to go to the latest movie with her this afternoon. I have only seen the first two movies and read the first couple books. I’m way behind on Harry Potter. Should be fun anyway, just being with my sweet daughter. Next weekend I am hoping to have Karl and Dee and the boys come up to stay with me in Ilwaco and maybe have Steve come up there and meet them and send him and Karl out fishing. I think Steve’s up for it; the tricky part is getting Karl and Dee to commit and be there. I know their life is busy and Dee may have to work that Saturday. But it would be fun to have them bring the boys camping for a night or two.
TravelinLady
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment