If we were having coffee: Hippie edition

Guests bring good luck with them.

~ Turkish Proverb

Evening visitation.

If we were having coffee, I would be happy to see you again.  Welcome back!  Let’s go to the kitchen, pick up some beverages and a few snacks, and then make our way out to the porch where we can enjoy the view while we chat.

How are you?  What have you been up to this week?  Have you taken any good walks?  Gone on any trips?  Read any good books or watched any good films?  I finally finished reading The Casual Vacancy.  I am glad I made it through the beginning as the book did pick up, and the ending was a bit of a shock.  I’ll say no more in case you want to either read the book or watch one of the television versions.

Shades of green.

Most of us are like [those] Zen tea bowls — uneven, cracked, imperfect.  And our harsh judge keeps wishing we were perfect.  The difference is the tea bowls are revered just as they are.

Our imperfections are a gift, the very qualities that make us unique.  If we make the shift to see them that way — we can value ourselves as the monks valued those tea bowls, just as we are.

~ Sue Bender, Everyday Sacred: A Woman’s Journey Home

I also finished Everyday Sacred: A Woman’s Journey Home.   It’s a small book that moseys along at a quiet pace.  It is filled with modest, everyday lessons, things we don’t always pay attention to until we stop rushing around from place to place or from thing to thing.

I am currently reading Holy Cow: An Indian Adventure.  I have always wanted to travel to India, and I think the closest I’ll get to that is through reading.  Armchair traveling, as they say.

Waiting for the sunflower.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that we finally got the Blu-ray player working and we watched the movie Peace, Love, & Misunderstanding.  I thoroughly enjoyed it, and couldn’t help thinking that I would love to be as cool a grandma as Jane Fonda’s character is in the film.  Maybe that’s because I always wanted to be a hippie, but missed the opportunity by a few years.  I don’t suppose that truly stopped me as I often have friends, family, and co-workers refer to me as a hippie or mention my tree-hugging hippie tendencies.  I take that as a compliment.

Someday.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that we had a few days of rain this week.  I thoroughly enjoyed those, too.  The landscape went from a parched brown to lush and green.  It was nice to have a couple of days to get caught up on the indoor chores, and to just relax once in a while and watch the rain.  The birds seemed to be happy with the rain, too.  The Eastern Bluebirds, Indigo Buntings, and American Goldfinches have been lighting up the front lawn with their brilliant colors, chasing each other around the perches we have set up out there.

Rain garden.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that you must stay until after sunset if you can.  The fireflies are magnificent right now, flashing in the trees and meadows.  M and I took a ride on Monday evening just to see them in the nearby woods and fields.  I was surprised (and maybe a little shocked) to find that there were no fireflies at all in the farm (wheat and corn) fields.  None.  But in the uncultivated meadows and woods, there are hundreds of thousands.  Probably millions.  It made me wonder what they are spraying in the fields that keeps the fireflies away.

Twisted.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I started working on a project that I’ve been meaning to work on for the past few years.  Planning for death and putting it together in a file with written instructions.  I think it would be good for my family to know my wishes when it comes to death, dying, and what I want done with my body when I die.  In case you’re wondering, it’s cremation for me and then, hopefully, someone will dig a big hole, pour my ashes in, and plant a tree.  Seems fitting for a tree-hugging hippie, don’t you think?  M and I kid about having Viking funerals (put me on a raft with combustibles and some of my worldly goods, push the raft out in the water, and set it on fire), but I suspect that wouldn’t be legal on a pond in Ohio (since I’d like to go back to Ohio).

Yesterday evening.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that M and I finally made it to the Hide Away Grill for the first time this season.  They opened on May 9th, and we’ve been talking about going since we heard they were open again.  As you can see, it was cloudy, but we did get glimpses of sunshine occasionally while we were there.

Lobster roll.

I had the lobster roll, which is a new item on their menu.  It was delicious.  The dill aioli was light and wonderful, and did not overpower the lobster.  M had the soft shell crab.  There were vegetables (in the form of mixed greens salads) and we split the onion rings (and still didn’t manage to finish them).

A look out over Tangier Sound before leaving the Hide Away Grill.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that the remodeling of the guest bathroom, formerly known at the duck dynasty throne room, is almost finished.  We’re still waiting on some parts for the toilet that were missing.  I hope they get here soon.  We have family coming to visit at the end of the month.  I am sure we can manage with one fully functioning bathroom if we must, but it would be much easier on all concerned if there are two.  (While I was proofreading this post, M went to get the mail and hurrah!  The parts are here.)

Yucca blooms.

If we were having coffee, I would tell you that I read something this morning that blew my mind.

If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, Infinite.  For man has closed himself up, till he sees all things thro’ narrow chinks of his cavern.

~ William Blake

Imagine.  Cleansing the doors of perception.  Wow.  (Since this is the Hippie Edition, perhaps I should have gone with “far out, man.”)  I don’t know why I had such a strong reaction to it, but there it is.  Wow.  Maybe it’s because I’ve been meditating more regularly lately, and I’m open to the idea of cleansing the doors of perception.

Reflections in the garden.

If we were having coffee, I would suggest we go for a walk before you leave.  It has been cloudy with a few brief sunny spells today so it’s a little warm and muggy, but not too bad.  We can walk out to the garden and, if you can stay until dark, watch the fireflies.  I’ve been thinking and dreaming about expanding the garden.  Maybe you will have a few suggestions or some advice, any and all of which would be welcome to this novice gardener.

Thank you so much for joining me for another coffee chat.  Wishing you a wonderful and wonder-filled weekend.

Oh, look! Looks like we’ll have at least one sunflower blooming soon.

Be good, be kind, be loving.  Just Be.  🙂

In the wheat field.

This post is in response to Part Time Monster’s #WeekendCoffeeShare.  Put on the kettle, start the coffee maker, open a bottle of wine, or whatever your preference is, and join us.  I’d love to hear all about what you were up to this week.