Today I sit on a warm sand dune at Honeyman State Park, Oregon, watching my grandsons hurl themselves down the slope screaming in complete ecstasy. My mind is flooded with memories. 56 years ago I visited this park with my parents on our way to the Seattle World's Fai
r. I, too, a carefree 14 year old, screamed and laughed and ran into the lake at the bottom of the same slope enjoyed now by Andy and Dylan.Dunes are the result of thousands of years of shifting, drifting sands. And so I think about the shifting sands of my own life - I'm no longer willing to run joyously down the dunes and my physical abilities are somewhat diminished, so I shudder to think how my knees and back might answer such an attempt with anger and pain. But that young girl still resides in this aging body and I can vicariously experience the thrill of that day half a century ago thanks to two young boys who are running with pure joy and delight, experiencing for the first time the awesomeness of the Oregon Dunes.
So much in my life has shifted and this 18 month trip across the continent is but a small example of how things have changed. Much of my life is behind me now, memories I can share with my grandsons. But Lew and I have time now, time to travel, time to reflect, time to experience the fullness of the years we have ahead of us. We are grateful.
It's the fifth day of our trip and we are slowly learning how to manage - our time, our emotions, our "stuff", our routines. It's not always easy, but even Demon, the cat, who we were sure was lost four days ago in Portland, has settled in. We've seen how cheese is made in Tillamook, enjoyed the beach and scene
ry at Cape Lookout, and run wild on the dunes. Tomorrow we head for California and the giant trees at Redwood National Park.All in all, it's been a good first week.
No comments:
Post a Comment