Here I am again

But where is here? And where have I been, you might think to ask. I wonder myself where I’ve been while I’ve been vacationing in my own backyard. Certainly I did go somewhere while I mostly stayed home, putting my personal needs first, ahead of the seemingly, almost ceaseless demands of my work.

I got caught up on some things that needed catching up on. Like the dentist and paying a bit more attention to my diet, nutrition and exercise practices, making progress, getting them, once again, in a better routine. That felt really good.

So how did I mange, today, to pre-empt my mountain road walk to handle business calls? I’d better watch out that this pattern of pre-empting me, personally, does not continue to creep up, again, on me.

Vacationing, though my body pretty much remained on ground level, there was also the trekking up to my inner Mountain of Awe that is so much the hike and the destination always beckoning me forth. As infrequently as I, physically, left the mountain side upon which I live, for the ten days of my vacation, I know that still I traveled far and wide. Yet not surprisingly I cannot say where I’ve been.

However, as I unpack my hiking gear and settle in, again, until the next vacation, I see that I’ve brought many gifts back from my travels. I will share them as I, once again, find my place here on this blog and pick up my stride. What I can see of them, even at this surface level, is that I have returned with a bit more wisdom and clarity and a refreshed perspective on my personal approach to how I live my life and to what purpose. Vacations are meant to do just this.

Though my metaphorical bags are right now still piled in the heap I left them in when I first arrived home here on ground level from the vacation, there are a few things that I can now see with increased clarity. At the top of the list is that I am certain that I love to write though I have mixed feelings about deadlines. That sums up the fact that sometimes it is a challenge to write, yet my life feels a certain kind of emptiness when I don’t. Perhaps the most satisfying is when I have just finished a piece.

So on the heels of my vacation, once again, I am called to re-commit myself to those four blog articles I “should” be producing each week (or most of the time) for these two sites. And, I must also lovingly reassure myself and my board that I will do my best to accomplish this feat and if I’m lucky, with the best of my intentions, to, at least, write two.

As I know and so do they that I love to write, they are assured that whatever I do will be with the caring to which our organization is pledged. Truly, I believe my board members will tolerate this pace in me, as there is really no one else standing in line for my job. Lisa will, therefore, no doubt, continue to keep my “hit” numbers and content on her radar screen, yet cut me plenty of slack as her erstwhile but somewhat limited student. And, Sue will, meanwhile, still be ready to rejoice in whatever I offer. She so much just wants my voice to be heard. “Dayenu” whatever I do will be enough for her though she might like to see and/or hear my words out in the world a bit more frequently, perhaps.

More to come.