HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Birthday Intermission Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Intermission No. 2 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24 Part 25 Part 26 Part 27 Part 28 Part 29 Part 30 Intermission No. 3 Part 31 Part 32 Part 33 Part 34 Part 35
Before and in between people coming to the GOE, and in the winter months when the garden needed little attention, Quinn and I did a lot of traveling together. We are both very low maintenance and have a similar sense of adventure, so our travels were always simple, and covered with the local flair.
Our first trip was a camping trip to Gila National Park in New Mexico. It was a quest to enjoy hot springs for my birthday the first year we were together. I was turning 48, he was 24. Quinn planned the whole trip, including what to pack, where to stay and how to get there. It was the first time anyone had completely planned a trip for me in my honor! I was super stoked to experience Quinn in the wild. It was a super simple trip. We took only the necessities. We decided to fast, so carried no food or equipment for cooking.
We found a sweet secluded place, spent our time playing naked in the creeks and hot springs, basking in the sun, and embroidering a cloak of hemp he had made himself.
I was going to include a picture of the cloak here as it is quite the piece, but alas, no pictures yet to be found. This cloak we took on many a trip around the world. We both gave many silent hours of our creative energy to this together project at home and on the road. We wove love into our every stitch of the embroidered big spiral, and I began a red phoenix rising, imagined a dragon (has not come to fruition yet), added Celtic spirals Irish clovers, and other personal touches throughout the years. This cloak was our ground blanket, pillow, comforter, shelter, together coat, and our snuggle bag in many a situation. Though this cloak was bulky, it was one Quinn could wear so didn't need hands for carrying it. This was the perfect example of how one thing can actually be many things, negating the need for hauling all the little things this one thing provides.
A couple of nights while laying in bed, we made up recipes. Seems like a silly thing to do while fasting, but perhaps that was the perfect time for this exploration. All of our recipes had some sort of bug in it. We turned them into chili, crunchy snacks like popcorn, crumbled toppings, chewy chocolatey bars, croutons, and stir frys.... If we had to, it was obviously that we could have easily found the way to feed ourselves on what was already abundantly available in nature.
It would have made an amazing book, though never went any farther than our tent. Now there are bug granola bars and other bug delights out on the market, and some at the GOE (especially Quinn) take advantage of the abundance of grasshoppers that jump and feast in our gardens.
One night while floating peacefully together in the hot springs, Quinn spread eagle in the water under the stars in my arms, he began jerking around almost as if he was having a small seizure. He made some twitches and jolts, sometimes with a sign or a groan. I began feeling concerned as I wasn’t sure what was happening, but reminded myself there was no real reason to worry - after all this was Quinn, who was highly tuned into well being. I knew fear wouldn’t help, so just stayed present supporting his body in my arms. Minutes of intensity went by. Keeping my eyes on him, I saw the reflection in the water of the tree branches and starry sky. The water’s movement made the stars appear to be shooting in all directions, then coming back to a place of calm as the water stilled.
We both surrendered to the moment, I closed my eyes. With my hands still on his hot body, I could feel there was something very natural about his movements, not something to be worried about, but to witness. I had never experienced that with anyone else before. It seemed as if his body was moving in ways to release some energetic blockages--like beating or shaking out a rug. Letting go of whatever his body was ready to release, I felt something significant had just happened, though not being inside of his body, I figured I would likely never truly know.
This was the most calming, most free trip I had ever had. Not only was the only cost the fuel to get there and an extremely inexpensive couple nights donation for a private mountain spa, but we were alone in the woods where the birds sang, and bears growled!
We had crystal activated water, hot springs, the sun, mountains to climb, creeks to cross, the trees, shooting stars, fire, constant massage, many double snuggle nights together, and all the simple pleasures of life. No worries, no responsibilities, no one to answer to, no bills to pay, no cell phones, no food prep, no messes, just pure presence.
On the way home, Quinn was at the wheel and pulled off the highway. When I asked what he was doing, he said “Giving you another birthday gift.” He told me to close my eyes, he took my face in his hands and turned my head around. There to behold was the most magnificent sunset of fire red, tangerine, and hot pink that I had ever seen. My heart swelled as he leaned over to kiss me saying “It’s all for you baby!” We watched in silence until the sun sank below the horizon, so full from this joyous, peaceful, exciting, intimate adventure. Feeling so much, I felt it nearly impossible to feel any more, but I was knowing that the best in life was yet to come. OMG what a beginning!
I sense have also experienced those jolting body movements. Though not as long as what Quinn experienced, I do get them, mostly in meditation. It feels something similar to a jerky shiver when I get the chills, and feel it’s perhaps the natural way the body moves the limbic system (as one would get when jumping up and down or on a trampoline). I feel as if I’m moving in uncontrollable, spontaneous ways for letting something out, making room for something new to come in. Opening the pathways, so to speak.
My was-band was only slightly keen on camping in our early years. Though he loved being with the locals, he also leaned toward fine food, spirits and accommodations, which I indulged in epic proportion with him. I had missed camping however, being drawn to nature as I’ve always been from growing up in the mountains. Quinn also was in high tune with nature, especially after spending time alone in his even more youthful years in the woods of Alaska with only a knife. We were both in such peace and harmony with our surroundings. Even the bears did not make us want to run.
The contrast from society life was really remarkable. It was as if a reset button had been pressed, giving us more power from nature to do what we were doing with our own little slice of the earth already. Though we returned to a house with electricity and running water, we were reminded of how the simple pleasures in life are truly the valuable ones. No strings attached, no expectations, no striving, just simple joy. That inner peace could be ours everyday!
Note: None of these pictures were actually taken on our Gila trip - not even that sunset picture could do justice to my Birthday Present Sunset. We didn't take a camera with us, and gratefully I had no interest in pausing those sacred moments to pick up a device. Though those early times were not caught on camera for anyone else to see, I am forever grateful for the intimate, completely present, focused moments together with no interruptions.
Get in on the series from @saramiller about her own intriguing personal experience at the @gardenofeden.
Check out the @gardenofeden website too.
Go with me on the journey toward Unconditional Love!
Stay Tuned for Part 37
