The Free Radical

It’s different now.

Even though some things barely change, if at all… is it only at the surface, at the level of appearance? Is there yet somewhere deeper we may go in this longstanding relationship?

I’ve been telling you about Eagle for weeks now. This time he let me snap a few pics as he circled again in the distance, above the eastern peaks. I captured him three times in flight, at nearly full zoom with auto-focus. This was the clearest one.

I also told you recently that it seemed as though the Forest was holding itself at an arm’s length away. It isn’t quite as immediate and accessible as it has been in the past. Ironically though, the River insists on these drastic incursions into the Forest where I stretch my legs, wandering through these contemplations.

There’s a clear offer of camaraderie here, but also the discontinuity of taking anything for granted anymore.

These myriad relationships will only proceed according to deliberate, conscious intent and action.

This is Dutch Creek, flowing from the west. Around the next upstream bend the canyon begins. I had hoped to venture in upon the spectacular ice flows, but the winter conditions never proved safe for me and the dogs this year.

And this is looking north from the Mesa. I try to show you different peaks from time to time.

My little cabin in the woods from 2003 is still tucked away there, inside that gorge. I’ve stitched so much of my life into these treasured footsteps here, sewn myself within this living tapestry, but the Forest is demanding something deeper now– something beyond this casual embroidery.

It wants ceremony, soul-family connections, dreams with the ancestors. My personal, conscious effort is the new dynamic, aimed at simultaneously drawing me deeper within as drawing me further out. It’s a stretch, but I’m up for it!

I’ll keep you posted, of course.