Tag Archives: joy

I Took a Right and Ended Up in the Mountains…

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I left the house thinking I was going to end up at Lake Padden or Squires Lake or maybe the Bellingham boardwalk. But I found myself taking a right onto Sunset Drive and the next thing you know I was driving to Mount Baker.

I guess my inner voice knew that the boardwalk and Lake Padden just weren’t going to cut it today. Today I really needed the mountains.

And oh, my friends! It was glorious up there! The colors are starting to change to reds and golds, and the temperature was just perfect.

I stopped at Picture Lake, of course, for the traditional photo of Mount Shuksin’s reflection. This time I did something I’ve never done before, though. Normally, I just walk out far enough on the Picture Lake loop trail to snap a couple of quick pictures, but this time I decided to follow the little loop around the lake and see what there was to see. I’m glad I did that. It’s really pretty on the other side of the lake, and the autumn colors were amazing.

When I finished the loop, I walked down to the other little lake in front of Picture Lake and snapped a couple of quick photos there, too. While I was doing that, a van appeared and a young woman stopped to snap pictures from her window. She was just so full of joy – so happy to be there – that her joy spilled over onto me, and I soaked it up. I asked her if I could take a picture of her taking a picture of the lake. She laughed and said sure. I learned her name is Aliece, and she learned mine was Karen, and we wished each other good days.

I drove on up to the Artist Point parking lot then. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do once I got up there, but I found myself heading up the trail to Artist Point.

There were so many wonderful people on the trail today! Annie and Wendy were visiting from Vancouver (I thanked them for coming down from Canada to visit us); there were Madan and Kusum from Nepal; and folks from the Shuksan Conservancy caring for the alpine meadows – among them Jim, Jana, and Clare.

As I was coming down from the peak of Artist Point I ran into Gail and Todd. I told them that I was up there on impulse – that I’d planned to take a walk on the Bellingham boardwalk, but I’d taken a right instead and ended up here. I told them it was exactly what I needed. I needed the mountains today, and I needed mountain people, too. I learned, then, that Todd and Gail are actually from Bellingham and walk on the boardwalk five or six times a week! How cosmic! “I was feeling despondent today,” I said, “and I could have stayed home and sat in that, but I ended up in the mountains instead.” Todd and Gail nodded their heads in understanding. I think we all needed the mountains today.

As I was coming down back to the parking lot, guess who I ran into? Aliece!! Oh, she’s so fun! I learned that she is an actual professional photographer – she showed me photos of some of the weddings she’s taken, and her photos were AMAZING!! I told her how much I appreciated her joy, and she said if you don’t feel joy up here, there’s not much anyone can do for you. I started cracking up. I mean. She was totally right. She said she’d come up here from Vegas to visit her father, and she was pretty sure that Washington State is one of the best places in the whole world. (I’m paraphrasing here, but that’s the essence of her thoughts. And I agree with them.) Before we parted – Aliece to continue up to the top of Artist Point, and me to go back to my car – we gave each other a good hug.

I’m so grateful for my day wandering around in alpine meadows. I’m so grateful for all the wonderful people I met. I’m so glad I took a right onto Sunset Drive this morning.

(Photos by Karen Molenaar Terrell.)

I’m Here to Tell You (That the World Is Full of Good People)

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I’m here to tell you that the world is full of good people. I mean. I think that might literally be my job – to show that the world is full of good people. I met several more good people en route home yesterday.

Sarah was our server at the Burgh Sportz Bar inside the Pittsburgh airport. She was nothing but wonderful – friendly, quick, attentive, and kind – she even presented me with an extra Arnold Palmer in a to-go cup before we left. She agreed to be in a picture as long as I was in it, too – so I handed her my phone and she clicked this photo of us.

Scott and I found our seats on the plane – he wanted an aisle seat this time, so he could stretch out his legs, and I ended up in a middle seat again. As other passengers made their way down the aisle I kept scanning the faces, wondering which one would be my seatmate.

And there he was! “You’re so lucky!” I told him when he pointed to the seat next to me. He smiled and raised his eyebrows in question. “You get to sit by me!” I said, and he laughed.

I always get the best seatmates. Always.

Kyle had traveled to Pittsburgh to watch his Steelers win the football game. I asked him if he’d grown up in Pittsburgh – if that’s why he was a Steelers fan – and he said no, he’d grown up near Yakima, but when he was a little kid his favorite colors had been yellow and black, and sooo… the Steelers! Another of his brothers had been a 49ers fan, and a second brother had been a Bears fan – and he had no idea why.

Kyle, Scott, and I chatted for most of the way home. We talked about football, basketball, baseball, track and cross-country. We talked about our work and we learned Kyle works in Adult Protective Services. (I hadn’t even known there was such a thing, but I’m glad to know there are people like Kyle making sure that vulnerable adults are safe.) I asked Kyle what his favorite subject had been in high school, and he told me that he’d really been interested in studying the Civil War when he was in high school. I told Kyle that the Civil War was one of the units I’d taught my 8th graders, and it was one of my favorite subjects to teach. We talked about our visits to Gettysburgh, and the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC. Kyle talked about a WWII museum he’d stumbled upon in New Orleans – one of the best museums he said he’d ever visited. We talked about the Mariners, travels, zip-lining, and trying to learn how to speak a foreign language. Kyle was smart and fun and I was so glad I got to sit by him.

The flight was uneventful, and we soon landed back in the land of big volcanoes.

I think my favorite part of traveling is all the cool people I meet along the way.

I Stayed Off the Internet This Morning and Went for a Walk

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I had a lovely walk on the boardwalk this morning – the temperature was perfect, the water dazzling, and the people and puppies I met along the way filled my heart all up with joy.

I decided to stay off the internet this morning and just go out into the world with an open heart. It was great!

I started my adventures at Village Books in Fairhaven. Earlier in the month I’d gotten one of those birthday postcards from Village Books that gave me 25% of one item at the store. I knew just what “item” I was going to use it for, too. Every September either Louise Penny or Richard Osman puts a new book out into the world, and I traditionally use my birthday postcard to buy one of their books. Richard Osman’s We Chase Shadows hit book shelves today, and that’s where my discount went. Once again, I was able to find a signed copy, too!

Then I went upstairs to the Next Chapter Cafe to get the free drink that comes with the purchase of a dessert. I bought a cupcake and got a free mocha, and made a new friend, too! Mischa was working behind the counter at the cafe, and was everything kind.

I brought my book, mocha, and cupcake back to my car and drove down to Boulevard Park for a quick walk on the boardwalk. I ran into Barb on the boardwalk – I’d met Barb at Peace Arch Park last spring, and it was fun to see her again. Barb introduced me to her husband, Mike, and sweet Charlie pup. Then I saw my old friend, Helen, and little Daisy coming down the boardwalk, and we stopped to chat, and then walked together down the boardwalk for a bit. As we were walking, we saw a woman wearing a cool butterfly shirt, and I asked if I could get her photo – there’s Modesa in her butterfly shirt, and Daniel standing next to her.

The autumn colors are just starting to appear in Fairhaven, so I snapped a couple photos of the golds and reds. And the reflections on the bay were beautiful, so I took a couple of reflection pictures.

I, of course, forgot my camera at home. These were all taken with my cellphone.

A Homonym Ferry Tail

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Hear’s a spot of fun four my fellow English teachers, what?

Wants upon a thyme, their lived a wee girl in a we town on a we planet. The we girl wanted two make a difference too the whirled, butt she didn’t no what she could due two make the whirled a better place.

Sew she thought and thought and thought about it.

Won mourning, she woke up after a good knight’s sleep – feeling full of joy and hope. She’d had a suite dream about her grandparents, who had dyed before she was borne. She’d never bin able two meat them in the person, butt she’d always felt like she new them because of the stories she’d herd about them. In her dream, she felt like she’d finally met them, four reel.

They’d smiled at her in the dream, and she’d felt there love fore her. She felt they’re love bloom in her hart.

And the we girl woke up from the dream no-ing how she could make the whirled a better place!

She wood love! She wood love everyone, everywhere, like their was know tomorrow! She wood love without distinction or discrimination. Know won wood be outside her love. She wood love the rich and pour, the old and young, the people on the left, and the people on the write, two. Everyone wood feel her love, and the love would bloom in the whirled just like it had bloomed in her hart.

And sew she loved. And the love bloomed. And their was peas.

The End.
Karen Molenaar Terrell

Apple Blossoms, Birdsong, Raspberry Pie, a Baby, AND Live Music!

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I rode my bike to the post office to mail off a card to a friend whose husband has just passed, and then went on into Edison to stop by and see another friend, Maggie, who’d recently lost HER husband. Even though Maggie and I live just a bike ride away from each other, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other. It was good to connect with her again. We hugged, and Maggie invited me into her house for a quick chat. I love Maggie’s home – as she said, it has “ambiance.” It’s one of those houses that’s probably 100 years old, full of history and cool side rooms.

As Maggie and I talked, her cat wound through my legs and then hopped up on Maggie’s lap and curled into a ball. Maggie has a bird feeder hanging from an apple tree outside her window, and I watched goldfinches, red-winged blackbirds, and red-hooded house finches flitting around in the apple tree. Every now and then a bird would stop and peer in the window, and it looked to me like the birds were asking to be fed. Maggie laughed and said she has to fill that feeder up daily to keep those birds happy.

After I left Maggie, I saw that Tweets Cafe was open. I decided to park my bike in front of it and get myself a treat.

A customer in front of me had ordered a raspberry pie with cream, and, once I saw that, I knew what I was going to get.

I took my pie out to a picnic table in the little green between Tweets and the Mariposa Restaurant. Oh, my friends, it was so peaceful there. I sat on the bench and listened to the birdsong and watched the sparrows hopping around in the apple blossoms above me.

Pretty soon a little family came out to the green – mama, papa, and four-month-old baby. I learned that Louie’s parents – Ali and Stephen – had come down from Bellingham, and that they were both nurses at Saint Joe’s. They let me touch Louie’s hand and he wrapped his little fingers around my finger. Awww…

Apple blossoms, birdsong, raspberry pie, AND a baby! Life does not get much better than that.

As I was leaving Tweets, I saw that a duo of musicians had set themselves in front of the restaurant and were playing a lively tune with a fiddle and guitar. I found myself grinning. Apple blossoms, birdsong, raspberry pie, a baby, AND live music!

I left the duo a tip in their hat, and then got back on my bike for the ride home – feeling refreshed and soul-filled from my excursion into town.

Edit: David Holzemer on violin/fiddle. Still hoping to learn who’s on guitar.

Here’s a link to the video I took of the musicians outside of Tweets: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuFLuYnpjNE

Otter Magic!

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Major magic this morning, my friends!

This morning’s message from the Cosmos told me to take a walk on the Padilla Dike Trail. I have come to trust this Cosmic voice when I hear it – it always seems to lead me to the exactly right place I need to be. So I grabbed my camera and headed out to the trail.

Sometimes I just walk as far as the shed, but this time the voice told me to go to the cluster of benches about half-way down the trail. So I did that. And as I was looking out at the water, I saw a little head bob up and then disappear. I recognized what I was looking at right away – an otter! I LOVE otters! Transfixed, I waited for the head to surface again – and then I saw a whole family of otters was out there – I think I counted four of them! They moved towards me through the water – diving and rising – until they were right in front of me! One of them emerged from the water, happily chomping on a fish. Every now and then one of them would swim close to me and look at me – curious what I was all about. I was charmed.

I yelled to a man coming down the trail, “Otters!” And he came over to join me in the otter magic. Because it was a little cold this morning, I had thrown on my knitted pink hat (dating back to 2017) before I’d started on my walk. Now the man smiled down at me and told me he liked my hat. I asked him if he knew when I’d first worn this, and he nodded his head, and said he did. And this led to a conversation about politics – but it wasn’t one of those hopeless, depressing conversations about politics – this conversation was full of humor and hope.

The man, Pat, was a Vietnam vet, and he talked a bit about that. Then I saw he was wearing a jacket with a mountain logo on it, and I asked him if he was a climber. I learned he’d climbed Denali when he and his family had lived in Alaska, and I told him I’d climbed Rainier, Baker, Adams, and Hood in my younger days. And THEN I saw he was wearing a WSU cap, and he told me his daughter had gone to school there, and he was a Coug now. I told him my son and I had both gone there, too.

By this time the little family of otters had swum away, and I could see them scampering on the shore of the island not far out in the bay. I pointed them out to Pat, and we watched them for a little longer.

I asked Pat if I could take his photo – it would probably end up on FB, I told him, and asked him if that was okay. Pat told me he wasn’t on FB, but his wife was – and he’d let her find him there.

After Pat and I parted, I began my walk back to my car – I think I was smiling the whole way. I was so grateful to have seen the otters this morning. Magic!

The magic wasn’t done, yet, though. I discovered a whole ‘nother place I’d never been before – but I’ll put that in the next post.
(Photos by Karen Molenaar Terrell.)

The Things That Are Freely Given to Us

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So there’s this verse in the Bible that I’ve been pondering the last week, and it’s led me to a better understanding of what real wealth is. Here’s the verse: “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” (I Corinthians 2)

I’ve come to understand that things like patience, kindness, honesty, compassion, forgiveness, fairness, and joy don’t cost us anything, and are the door that leads to the heaven that Jesus said was “within” us. We can’t find patience or kindness on a shelf at the supermarket. We can’t put a gallon of honesty on our debit or credit cards, or use Venmo to buy a pound of forgiveness. We can only find those things within us. And there’s no limits to those things – you can’t run out of them; everyone has equal access to them; and they’re totally free!

I’ve been really conscious of drawing on the unlimited supply of patience and kindness this week as I’ve navigated my way through the challenges of life. I’ll admit I haven’t always been patient or forgiving this week – but I feel like I’ve made a start to finding my way to heaven. I think the more I practice, the easier it will become.

Nudged by Love to Find the Magic

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March 9:
This morning a series of what seemed like random happenings led me to run into a friend I rarely see – and brought me such joy! Later, as I contemplated this, it felt, to me, that the entire way I had been led by Cosmic Love – nudged and guided to that surprise meeting with my friend. And it occurred to me that this kind of magic is happening to us all the time – that Love is continually guiding us to beautiful gifts. I am so grateful for all the good that fills my life.

So here’s what happened:

I’d gone off at sunrise to make a run to Fred’s to get something for a friend. I hadn’t gone far on my drive when I came upon an amazing reflection of the sunrise in a flooded field. Magic! I took some quick pictures and continued on my errand.

I found what I needed for my friend, bought myself some groceries while I was there, and then, on impulse, got myself one of those Lindt creamy chocolate bars, too. (That candy bar is going to appear later in the story.) When it came time to ring me up, the total came to $66.66. “Six six six six,” the cashier said. “Well, that’s kind of scary,” I said, laughing. My friend, Patty, who was just about to come in as a cashier, started laughing then, too. She reminded me that the week ends with a Friday the Thirteenth, too. “Let’s round it up for the food bank,” I said (I was going to do that, anyway), and everyone nodded their heads in agreement that this was a good plan.

I drove home – stopping at my friend’s house to deliver what I’d gotten for her – and, when I got home, started unpacking the rest of my groceries. When I got to the bottom of my canvas bag, I realized that my candy bar was missing. Huh. It was such a small thing, at first I thought I’d just chalk it off as one of those things that happens sometimes, and move on. But I finally decided I might as well call Fred’s and see if a candy bar had been left behind and turned in to their customer service people. I was embarrassed to make the call asking about a candy bar (!), but the customer service person asked, “Lindt? Extra creamy?” And when I confirmed this, she said it was sitting right there, waiting for me. Whoah. I told her I’d be right in to pick it up.

There was a small line at customer service. When the woman ahead of me got up to the desk she bought a Powerball and a Lotto ticket. Although I’ve bought a lotto ticket for Scott a couple times when he’s asked me to – I have never, in my life, bought a lotto ticket for myself. I was kind of intrigued by the idea of it. The Mega Millions one is up to $533 million now. I started fantasizing about what it would be like to win something like that.

Anyway. So when it was my turn at the customer service desk, I announced myself as “the candy bar lady” and said I was really embarrassed about this. The customer service woman started laughing, and assured me that this kind of thing happens all the time, and handed me my Lindt bar.

I brought my candy out to the car, but then I thought again about that Powerball thing. It is a weird week with Friday the 13th and everything, and maybe, for me, it would be a LUCKY week. So I threw my Lindt bar into the car, and then headed back in to Fred’s to get myself one of them there Mega Million thingies – a vision of stacks of money tickling my brain.

When I got to the lobby, my friend, Amanda, entered from the other door – and there we were! It was so good to see her again! Amanda is one of those people that just exudes joy and kindness – and anyone blessed to be in her presence, feels it. I told her I was on my way in to buy a Lotto ticket of some kind, but I wasn’t really sure how to do it. She said her dad buys Lotto tickets sometimes, and walked me through what I needed to say to the clerk. I thanked Amanda, and started to turn away to go get a Lotto ticket, when I realized that being led to come back into the store hadn’t been about getting a Lotto ticket at all! It had been about running into Amanda in the lobby! I told Amanda this, and she grinned and nodded her head, and we stayed and chatted together for another ten minutes. It was wonderful.

I never did get a Lotto ticket.

On the way home, I took a side road and came upon a field of trumpeter swans flapping and honking and having a jolly good time. When I first got there, there were actually swans on both sides of the road, and – I do not think I’ve ever seen this before – a line of swans waddled across the road in front of me like they were pedestrians in a crosswalk. It was charming. Magic!

Finding the Magic on a Dark Day

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It was dark and cold and I needed to get out of the house and find some magic.

I drove towards La Conner, took a left, another left, and a right, and ended up at Kohl’s in Burlington. I rarely shop at Kohl’s, but I found myself heading towards their door. I meandered towards the back of the store and looked to the left, and this is where I found magic!

There was a happy little toddler there, busily pushing one of those toy popper mowers and my heart just melted at the sight of him. He was joy personified! I looked around to see who he was with, and found his mom and dad watching him from the aisle. They saw me grinning and laughing, tickled by their little boy, and started laughing with me. After a couple of attempts, I realized the little one’s mom and dad didn’t speak English – I think they were speaking Oaxacan – but we managed to communicate without words, and I was able to let them know I wanted to buy the popper toy for their toddler. They nodded and smiled, and followed me as I went to the cashier to pay for the toy. When I’d bought the popper mower, I brought it back to the little one – who was sitting in the cart now – and thanked him for the pleasure of meeting him today. It – all of it! – was magic!

I wandered around the shopping area for a while then – to See’s for some California brittle – to Petco to watch the fish. And then I drove to Fred’s for some impulse shopping.

I picked up a bag of oranges, a bag of apples, cherry tomatoes, cat food, yogurt, and went to the cashier to pay. She asked me how I was doing and I told her it was cold and dark and I needed to come to Fred’s and buy impulse items. “Like cat food,” I said, “and I don’t even have a cat!” She started laughing with me. I told her nah, I was just joking.

It brings me joy to be with people who know how to laugh with me.

It was still cold and dark outside as I drove home, but now my inside was all warmed up with laughter.

The Way It Should Always Be

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PUPS!!! So many sweet pups on the boardwalk today! They brought me such joy, filled my heart all up with good things. There were two Lilahs; a Motley; Aspen with her human, Ash, ; Gypsy; my old friend, Daisy, with her buddy, Melody; Akira, who danced down the boardwalk; and my old friend, Baker – who came bounding down the boardwalk to greet me.

The bay was beautiful today, too – blue and shiny, with fog on one side, and the Canadian Coastals on the other.

The road above Taylor Dock to Fairhaven was closed because of construction, so I went up one block to by-pass the blocked street and then came down into Fairhaven from above. I felt Cafe Blue calling to me – I haven’t been there for a while and was missing the welcoming vibe. Cafe Blue has always been packed full of people when I’ve been there, so I mentally prepared myself for that. I figured if I couldn’t find a place to sit, I’d just get a coffee to go and take it with me on my walk back to my car.

Cafe Blue WAS packed again today, but, cosmically, as soon as I got done giving my order and started looking for a table, one opened up! It was a table for four and I felt kind of greedy sitting there – so I put myself in the corner of the table, ready to offer the rest of the table to whoever was looking for a place to sit.

My coffee arrived and I settled into the space, closed my eyes for a minute and just let myself absorb the joy around me. When I opened my eyes I saw a couple of young women who looked like they were looking for a place to sit. I offered them the open seats at my table and they sat there until the table next to mine opened up for them. One of the women, Elena, had cool rings on every finger, and I asked her about them. She said the one on her thumb had been made by her grandma, and the other rings were ones she’d mostly found in shops around Bellingham – rings with art and cool quartz and tiger’s eye rocks. I told her I love rocks, too, and reached for my amber necklace to show it off to her – and then I realized I’d forgotten to wear it today. Elena laughed and said that happens to her, too – just when she wants to show off something, she doesn’t have it with her.

I enjoy the feeling of community I always feel in the Cafe Blue – strangers smiling at each other, sharing tables, becoming friends. That’s the way it should always be.