Tag Archives: love

Bountiful Blessings: I Asked Love to Show Me She Existed Today

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Ask, and ye shall receive. BIG time!

I asked Love to show me She existed today – after reading the stories coming through my feed this morning, I was in sorry need of reassurance. And Love said “Okay,” and then dumped such a deluge of blessings upon me – one after an incredible ‘nother – that I’m sitting here, still trying to process all the magic She poured over me today. I think Love has a sense of humor.

When I left the house, I was feeling sort of closed-up and tentative about the world. Cautious. I thought I would just walk and observe and keep myself to myself today. But, of course that didn’t happen.

Because. Connections. A Seahawks shirt. A WSU cap. Animal-lovers. A mountaineering father. I have found I don’t need to dig too deep to find a connection with pretty much every person I meet.

The first thing that happened was I saw my old friend, Baker pup, wagging his way down the boardwalk, greeting every human who came his way. So, of course I had to stop to talk to Baker’s human and thank him for bringing Baker to the boardwalk for all of us. Not long after I gave Baker a scratch behind the ears, I came upon another one of my favorite pups, Ari. Ari’s human let me give Ari a treat so that I could become his “hero forever.” And, if I’d just met Baker and Ari, that would have been enough. But no, Love wasn’t done with me, yet.

Just before I got to the coffee shop in Boulevard Park, I saw a little pup stylin’ a purple mohawk, and I was instantly charmed. Her human, Wendy, told me that she dyes Lucy’s hair herself – using masking tape to keep the dye inside a little rectangle on top of Lucy’s head. She said Lucy loves to go shopping with her at thrift stores, and enjoys her spa days when Wendy dyes her hair and gives her doggy massages. The idea of a spa day for Lucy totally tickled me. Wendy graciously agreed to let me take little Lucy’s picture.

I walked into the Wood’s in Boulevard Park to get myself a mocha. The barista fed me my line: “And what’s a good name for that drink?”

To which I answered my usual, “Well, I’m not sure it’s a good name, but my name is ‘Karen.'”

To which he answered, “I love that name! My mom is named Karen!”

To which, I gave him the highest tip.

As I stood off to the side, waiting for my drink, I saw a young man wearing a WSU cap. “Go Cougs!” I said, and he started grinning. I told him the year I’d graduated from WSU – long, long ago – and learned he’d just graduated in June. I learned that his friend also graduated from WSU, and is going to Tennessee soon, to get her law degree. My new friends introduced themselves as Emma and Austin, and cheerfully agreed to let me snap their photo.

I finished my mocha outside at a picnic table, people-watching and listening to the breeze gently rustle the autumn leaves above me. I felt such peace there.

A couple of women passed by, and one of them stopped and started frantically patting down her pockets. Uh oh. “Did you lose something?” I asked, concerned for her. She smiled and said she thought she’d lost her phone, but she found it. Whew!

When I felt it was time, I moved on down the boardwalk. I’d just gotten to the end of the first boardwalk section, when I saw a little group of people pointing and looking into one of the pine trees there. I was curious, and asked them what they saw. They told me there was an animal in a nest in the branches, and they helped me find it. I tried to get a picture, but the nest was hidden in the shadows of the tree, and it was hard to get a clear shot. For a while we stood together, speculating about what kind of an animal this was – we knew it wasn’t a squirrel because it didn’t have a squirrel tail, but see? There’s its ears and “I think it’s looking at us.” Someone thought it might be a mouse. I suggested it might be a completely new kind of creature – half-bird and half-mammal. And my new friends played along with me.

I loved these people. I asked them if they were from Bellingham, and learned they were visiting from Florida. I welcomed them to my part of the world and thanked them for sharing their discovery with me. And, of course, I asked if I could take their picture. I told them I was collecting magic today, and they were a part of that. So we all introduced ourselves, and I learned my new friends were Lin, Portia, and David.

After Lin, Portia, and David continued on their journey, I stayed a little longer to see if I could get a better view of the creature in the tree. And when Caden and Kylie passed by, I could tell they were people who would enjoy seeing the nest, too. So now *I* got to share the nest-magic with more cool new friends!

Little Fig pup appeared on the path as I was heading for the second section of the boardwalk. She just radiated friendly puppyness and it was impossible to NOT take her photo.

When I got to the ramp above Taylor Dock I found the women who’d passed me while I sat at the picnic bench in Boulevard Park – when I’d thought one of them had lost something. They recognized me and asked me if I’d take their photo for them. I did that for them, and then they posed for me so I could take their photo for myself. Rose and Claire were very fun. I learned that they were visiting Bellingham from Alberta, and I thanked them for coming down from Canada to see us.

But wait! There’s more!

When I got up to Fairhaven, I texted my husband to let him know I was bringing home dinner, and stopped at OVN to order a pizza for us. While I waited outside for my pizza, I noticed a dog at the next table was sticking her snout in between her humans, looking for attention, and I started grinning. More pup magic! I told the family around the table that I was loving their dog, and they started laughing. They said Kodak ignores them when they want to give her attention, but then inserts herself between them when SHE wants attention. “Like a cat,” I said, nodding, and they laughed and agreed.

I came over to their table to get a picture of Kodak, and to give her a pet on the head. Kodak’s family introduced themselves to me then. Cindy was the matriarch, and her children Zoe and Jordan were with her, and their friends, Vaughn, and Lani. I learned, then, that Kodak’s family was up in Bellingham because Zoe was attending WWU this year to study anthropology. And all this got us to talking about state universities. I told them one of my sons had attended WWU, the other one had attended WSU, I had attended WSU, and my father had attended UW. I said my dad and I had enjoyed the Apple Cups together – but, of course, that’s all different now from when he was alive. Cindy said her dad had gone to UW, too, and maybe her dad and mine had known each other! And then one thing led to another – we started talking about our dads – and we discovered they’d both been renowned mountaineers and almost surely had known each other!!! Her father, Jack Kendrick, had been one of Fred Beckey’s climbing partners and had climbed with the Whittaker twins. I told Cindy my pop had climbed Mount Kennedy with the Whittakers, and was probably best known for his participation in the 1953 K2 Expedition.

It was so fun talking to Cindy and hearing again the names of people from Dad’s circle of friends! (Here’s more about Jack Kendrick: https://www.mountaineers.org/…/in-memory-of-jack-kendrick ) (And here’s more about Pop: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dee_Molenaar )

Connections! I love these connections we all have with one another.

But wait! There’s more!

My pizza had been brought out by this time and it was time to go. So I bid my new friends goodbye, grabbed my pizza, and headed up to my car. When I got to the statue of J.J. Harris sitting on the bench at the corner of 11th and Harris, I saw a man in a Seahawks sweatshirt who looked like he might be wanting to sit next to Mr. Harris on the bench. I said, “Go Seahawks!” and asked him if he was thinking of sitting on the bench. He started laughing and said he hadn’t been thinking of that, but he would do that for me if I needed someone in a photo. So he sat on the bench for me. I took a photo of him with his cell and then took a picture of him with mine. I learned that Parry was visiting Bellingham from BC, and I told him I was so happy to see Canadians visiting us.

Parry reassured me that we’re “all one” – and it felt like Love Herself speaking to me.

I Woke Up Angry This Morning

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I woke up angry this morning. Angry at the cruelty, and blatant racism, sexism, misogyny, and deceit playing out in front of us; angry at the people who seem to be fine with all of that; angry at the people who talk about “leftist extremism” while brushing off January 6th as a “rally” and ignoring the violence being done to children and other innocent people because they “look guilty” and happen to live in the wrong parts of towns in blue states; angry at an administration which seems to take delight in inciting violence and hate towards states and people it views as its “enemies”; angry at the federal agents who say “f***” the children and “now go home or you’re next”; angry at bullies; angry at the people who applaud the bullies; angry at the “friends” who have tried to guilt me into silence by calling me a “pot stirrer” when I’ve provided information counter to their political views; and maybe I woke up angry at myself, too, for feeling powerless to make the cruelty stop.

And so that’s how I left our house this morning – angry and grumpy.

We needed to go to Sedro-Woolley to run an errand, and, afterwards, ended up at a coffee shop for drinks and treats. After a while, when we still hadn’t gotten our order, I began to feel impatient and asked the baristas if maybe they’d forgotten us. We got our drinks soon afterwards.

Another customer had come in after us. She waited patiently at another table. She never asked if she’d been forgotten. She never looked agitated or perturbed. She quietly sat at her table, swinging one leg while she waited for her coffee. She had on the coolest rubber boots – she’d rolled them down at the top and there was this cool salmon-pattern revealed on the rolled-down parts. I had to ask her about them.

She told me the pattern was designed by the “Salmon Sisters” in Alaska. She’d lived in Alaska for a while, she said. I learned then that she’d worked for NOAA as a marine biologist, and now worked for the Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife. I told her my brother was a marine biologist, too, and had worked for NOAA for a time, and then another government agency, and had ended his career working for the State. We talked about fishing for a while – she told me something I hadn’t known – that if there isn’t enough fishing allowed, the fish population will exceed what the rivers supply in food, and the salmon population will begin to die out. She was interesting. And kind. She was interesting and kind and patient. And, when she finally got her order and was ready to leave, I thanked her for modeling kindness to me this morning. I told her I’d come in to the coffee shop feeling grumpy – which isn’t my usual self – and she’d helped bring me back to myself again. She smiled and thanked ME – which is, of course, what a kind person does.

Meeting my new friend reminded me of one of the most essential lessons life has taught me – that as long as we can love and show kindness to the people we encounter every day, we aren’t powerless – we CAN make a difference. Just like my new friend did for me this morning.

I’m still angry about the cruelty I see in our world. Maybe it’s right to be angry about that. But I don’t feel so powerless, anymore.

Thoughts on Love from Noemi Ban, a Holocaust Survivor

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I had the great privilege of knowing Holocaust survivor Noemi Ban. I invited Noemi to come to my class and speak to my eighth graders about her experiences as a survivor of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. Her sharing was powerful and inspiring. Afterwards, Noemi asked me if I could drive her home, and she invited me into her house. The first thing I saw when I stepped into her home was a photo of her family – her parents and siblings – taken before the Holocaust. Noemi told me it was the only picture she had of her family. Her father had found it in the rubble of their home after the war. The photo was precious to her. She’d lost her mother and siblings in the death camp’s gas chambers almost as soon as they’d arrived at Auschwitz.

My friend, Diane Sue, who was a close friend of Noemi’s, told Noemi’s story in the book, Remarkable Resilience. I am feeling a sense of urgency right now to share this excerpt from Remarkable Resilience: The Life and Legacy of Noemi Ban:

“I imagine that my story has opened your eyes to the ease with which hatred can grow and destroy. Hate can be perilously insidious, beginning as a seedling that grows into a powerful tree, and, before we know it, we are surrounded by a dark and dangerous forest. Hate can destroy a person, or can destroy a civilization. Why is it so easy for some people to hate their fellow human beings? We asked that question when imprisoned in Auschwitz, trying to understand why the Nazis hated us when they didn’t even know us. Similarly, we may ask why some people hold so much animosity toward certain groups even in today’s world…

“I realize my reaction to what happened during the Holocaust could easily have been hatred. Many trauma survivors find it difficult to let go of their anger or resentment. I feel fortunate that I not only survived, but that I also avoided having my heart poisoned by hate. Those who hate can become bitter and lose their perspective on the beauty of life. I learned in Auschwitz what hate can do and I refused to do to myself what the Nazis did to me. If I focused on hating the Nazis, then I would still be their prisoner. And how can you live a peaceful life with hate in your heart? Some people wonder if I have forgiven the Nazis. Although I am working on it, I doubt I will ever be able to say that I have completely forgiven them. Nevertheless, when someone asks if I hate the Nazis for what they did to my family, I can honestly say I don’t hate anyone. I feel sadness, anger, and hurt, but not hate. There is another way to live life, and that was my choice—to live with love. “

As We Work Our Way Through These Challenging Times Together

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Dear friends,

Here’s my quandary: I want to avoid sensationalism and doomsdaying here, but I don’t want to tiptoe around the very real concerns our world is facing – the evil that needs to be exposed, seen for what it is, addressed and healed. When I bring up concerns, my intent isn’t to overwhelm or burden you. My intent, when I share with you, is to feel the power of your fellowship as we work our way through these challenging times together.

Some of you have asked me, at various times, how I think we should be praying for our world. For me, I’ve found that the best prayer starts with Love. I feel Love’s presence with me – feel Love spreading Her wings over all the world – embracing and caring for each and all of Her children – without discrimination or boundary. I recognize that NO one is outside Love’s care – that Love loves no one less than anyone else. Love loves those we might call our enemies no less than She loves our allies. Love “maketh the sun to shine on the evil and the good; and maketh the rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” (Matthew 5:45) I recognize Love as the ONLY power – NOTHING has the power to usurp Love’s governing of Her own creation. I wait. I listen. I feel the presence of Love. I know the power of Love. And this brings reassurance and healing to my thought.

I like to think – I hope – that our collective love reaches those who might be feeling alone and scared right now. I know I have been the recipient of the collective love-power from my friends in the darkest times in my life – I’ve felt your love lifting me up. I’ve felt the power of that. And I want to share that same love-power with others in their “darkest times.”

I want my internet space to be a safe place for my friends. I have friends from pretty much every race, ethnicity, religion, political party, gender and sexual orientation on here, and I feel the need to protect my friends from bullying and cruelty when they are in my internet home. Bigotry, hatred, unkindness, and generalizations and stereotypes made about whole groups of people are not welcome here.

Thank you for your friendship.

Your kindness and love has made the world a better place.

Karen

What a Glorious Day!

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What a glorious day!

When I woke up this morning, I checked my impulse to reach for my phone to do wordle games. I knew that once I got on my phone I’d get sucked into the vortex. I determined to just give myself some time to commune with the Cosmos this morning, to commune with Love.

So I loaded myself and my camera into the car, put in a CD of inspirational music, and headed up to Bellingham. My first thought was that I’d go to the boardwalk for a walk, but then it occurred to me that maybe I should pay a visit to Lake Padden first, to see how the autumn colors were evolving up there.

The autumn colors aren’t in full bloom at Lake Padden, yet – but the gold is starting to emerge, and the vine maples are showing some copper and red.

I walked down to the lake to take some pictures of reflections, and this is when I saw a little youngster having fun throwing rocks into the lake. I loved his rock-throwing technique – he’d wind his arm up – bringing it around and around – before throwing. I felt such joy, watching him. He reminded me of the joy I see in my granddaughter.

When I got to chatting with his mom, I learned she is a photographer, and we talked about photography for a while. She said she, too, had been planning to go to Bellingham, but changed her mind en route – thinking, like me, that she might see autumn colors at Lake Padden. It was cosmic that we connected today!

After my visit to Lake Padden, I continued on my drive to Fairhaven – planning to take advantage of the free parking before 11:00.

I saw some of my usual favorite things on my walk today – boat reflections on the bay; my friend, Mary; Baker Pup, who came up and greeted me, and let me give him a scratch behind the ears (I told Baker’s human that Baker is like the boardwalk’s service dog for the humans who walk there); and the heron in the tree by the boardwalk.

After my walk, I stopped at the Colophon Cafe for some brunch, and was happy to see Taryn would be my server today. Taryn is one of my favorite people – she’s funny and smart and kind and thoughtful. And I learned today that she’s also a photographer!

This kind of funny thing happened when I came to the Colophon. I didn’t expect the restaurant to be open because I thought it was closed on Wednesdays. So when I told Taryn I was surprised to find them open because I didn’t think it would be open on Wednesdays, she told me it was Tuesday.

Wait. What. Today was Tuesday?! But. I googled “What day is today?” and my phone told me it was Tuesday. But. I went out to lunch with my daughter-in-law yesterday and we do that every Tuesday. And I went hiking with Scotty the day before that – and we always hike on Mondays. So. Was I having two Tuesdays in a row? Was I in some kind of weird time warp? Or something? I googled again, and this time my phone told me it WAS Wednesday. Whew. Maybe because I hadn’t gotten on my phone since yesterday, it had given me the wrong day when I first googled.

Anyway. The next time Taryn came around, I told her that it IS Wednesday. She started laughing then, and told me that when she’d said it was Tuesday, she meant that Tuesdays are the days the Colophon is closed now.

Ohhhhh….

I had such a fun day today! I felt Love with me all day – expressed in the kindness and smiles and joy all around me.

Gifts from the Cosmos

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I had a most cosmic day, my friends!

I didn’t sleep well last night – woke up at 3:00 feeling disturbed and distressed about the state of the world. Came downstairs to play wordle games – sometimes word puzzles are soothing for me. And, as I was toodling around on my laptop, I clicked on my email and found an unexpected message waiting for me there from a dear friend. The message was full of support and kindness – the words were just what I needed. I recognized this was Love speaking to me.

Eventually I went back to bed and slept a couple more hours. When I woke up I felt impelled to go up to Bellingham for a walk. Before I left, I almost messaged my friend, Rebecca, asking her if she’d be able to meet me at the coffee shop in Boulevard Park – I haven’t seen Rebecca for a while and missed her – but I know how busy she is, and felt hesitant to ask for her time. So, without messaging her, I got in my car and headed up to Bellingham, via I-5.

I-5 was really busy, though, and I soon left the freeway to take the backroads up there. On my way up, I actually passed Rebecca’s home and the thought occurred to me that I could just stop by and see if she was available. But, again, I was hesitant to impose on her time, so I kept going.

When I got to Boulevard Park, I found a rock with “JOY” painted on it, nestled on a big piece of driftwood. It was the exactly right thought I needed right then. Cosmic!

I went into Wood’s at Boulevard Park and ordered myself a mocha. As I was ordering my drink, I glanced over and saw a couple waiting for their coffees – and the way they were standing they looked like they were dancers holding ballet positions. The man looked to be in ballet position 2, and the woman to be in ballet position 4 – and they looked so beautiful standing there that I, of course, had to say something. “You look like dancers posing,” I said. “You’re beautiful!” And they both started grinning and laughing. The man said he was just trying to stretch his legs after his drive from Bellevue. He asked me if I was a local, and I said I was from Bow, twenty minutes to the south. I learned they were from Boston, but the man was in Bellevue on business for a couple weeks, and had brought his wife, Sofi, with him. They were lovely. When they got their drinks, they turned and smiled and wished me a good day, and I wished them the same.

When I got my mocha I stepped out of the coffee shop and saw before me little Bear, Rebecca’s pup, standing in front of me! And there was Rebecca!!! Cosmic!!!

We sat down at a picnic table in the park and talked and laughed and talked and cried and laughed some more, and chatted with the people who walked by on the sidewalk. And in this manner we met:

– Sue (in the jaunty turquoise hat), who comes down from Vancouver every month with her husband to eat at Magdalena’s Creperie in Fairhaven. (Today she’d had a Belgian chocolate/banana/caramel-filled crepe topped with whipped cream – she showed us a picture on her cellphone. Yum! )

– Everett, from Michigan, who asked Rebecca and I if we’d like him to take our photo for us. I handed him my phone the wrong way and it took us a while to figure out that he was having problems taking our picture because the camera was pointed at him, rather than us. 😃 That gave us all a good laugh. And then, once our photo was taken, I, of course, had to take HIS photo.

– Mikey and Grant, whom I’d noticed when I’d driven through Fairhaven earlier. I’d seen them pointing up the hill and giving directions to a couple on the sidewalk. I saw these two men again in Boulevard Park. I told them I’d witnessed them giving directions in Fairhaven, and they nodded and smiled. They introduced themselves as Mikey and Grant, and Mikey said he’d always wanted to be a person who could give directions to someone else, and today it had finally happened that he knew how to get to the place someone wanted to go!

– Steven, who went weaving by us on his skateboard like a pro. He stopped to chat with us, and even went back and did some more weaving for me so’s I could get a photo and a video.

After we’d finished our drinks, we headed down the boardwalk for some exercise. This is when we met two sweet new pup-friends – who, for reasons of privacy, I shall refer to as Pup 1 and Pup 2. Little Bear really enjoyed meeting new pup friends, too.

When we got to the top of the Taylor Dock ramp, we decided to go back to Boulevard Park by way of the path that meets up with the Boulevard Park road. And there were more people to meet! We waved to the Jehovah’s Witnesses at the top of the ramp – we’re all old friends now; said hi to a young man as we passed him reading a book in his van-home; and hugged and said goodbye when we reached the park.

I discovered today that Rebecca is the perfect person to meet new people with – she gets it! She understands those connections that keep our world turning.

And how cosmic to run into her today! What a gift from the Cosmos!

There Is Magic Out There!

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We sit at a table outside the restaurant
and chat and watch people pass by
and there is magic out there!

A young man with a bright smile
walks by, holding a small bouquet.
I smile at him and point to the flowers,
and he grins and says, “A first date.”
“That’s so sweet!” I say, and his smile
gets even brighter.

A little chap of three or four walks by
with his mom and he turns and looks
at me and I wave. He waves back,
serious about our exchange – a little man.
My heart melts.

A woman passes by with her grandbaby –
she sees our grandma faces light up
and brings her little one to our circle
so we can share in her grandmother-joy.
She is not called “Grandma” she tells us –
she is “Nanna” and she is enjoying
her last days with her grandbaby
before he moves to the east coast
with his parents. All of our grandbabies
live out of state and we understand
what she’s feeling right now.
“Enjoy these precious moments,” I say,
and she nods and smiles and hugs
her grandbaby close before moving on.

At the table next to us there is a baby
in a stroller and she smiles at me and gives
me high fives with both her feet and hands
all at once. A high twenty!
Such joy!

And now the man who’d had the bouquet
walks by on the other side of the street.
He is with his date and they are laughing
and chatting and getting to know each other.
He sees me watching and waves and grins
and I wave back.

Magic everywhere!
-Karen Molenaar Terrell

Rays of the Same Sun

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Dear Father-Mother,
Help us all to know Your love
and express it to one another
– with no one excluded,
no one left out,
no one on the outside,
and no one without.
May your love thaw
the hearts frozen with fear,
and numbed with hate –
may all creation feel You here.
May we wake to see a new day
where we see we all are one –
cells of the same cosmic Body –
rays of the same Sun.

Karen Molenaar Terrell

Hope From My Fellow Travelers

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Scott and I are in that back-and-forth serpentining line to get through security at the airport. I have a smile on my face. I’m trying to maintain this as my default face. Sometimes, as people wind past me, they respond with their own smiles to my smile. I love when that happens. Connections!

One man – maybe our eldest son’s age – glances up and sees my smile and smiles this sweet smile that contains joy and humor and kindness. A healing smile. When we pass each other again, I point out to him that we’ll be passing each other again soon, and we’ll get to smile more smiles. He starts laughing. The next time we wind past each other I tell him that this looks like it will be our last smile-exchange. He grins and says, “It’s been a pleasure!”

We meet again at that place where we need to load our stuff into bins. There is a shortage of bins, so my smile partner and I go and find bins to give to the people behind us. When we get through the people-scanner machine and the baggage-scanner machine, we meet again on the other side of security. We introduce ourselves – he says his name is “Kareem” and I (who have now mastered the comedic timing of presenting my name just right), pause before saying, “Karen.” He starts laughing. He says he’s bound for Michigan, and I tell him we’re on our way to Pittsburgh, and we wish each other safe travels before parting.

When Scott and I get seated on the plane, we discover that there’s an empty seat on the other side of us. This is sort of miraculous – our plane is completely full, except for that one seat. When it comes time for the flight attendant to do the safety presentation, she sees the empty seat and uses it as her staging area. She is fun. She and Scott, who’s sitting in the middle seat, banter cheerfully for a bit, before the safety presentation starts. For the first time in years probably, I am glued to the safety presentation. Every so often she looks over at me and sees my rapt attention, and starts grinning. When she finishes I tell her she did a FANTASTIC job! “I should have videotaped it!” I say, and she starts laughing.

The flight is uneventful. As I look down on the earth 30,000′ below, I send out love to all the humanity passing below us. I feel the plane embraced in Love. I see all the people in it are expressions of Love. We are in a bubble of Love.

When we land, we need to take the underground train to get to our rental car. As we load into the train, a sweet brown-skinned woman of about my age gestures to the pole she’s holding onto, and invites me to share it with her. Kindness. Everyone taking care of each other.

I have found hope for the world in my fellow travelers.

I have had such a lovely day. I went up to Bellingham for my walk this morning and found new friends and pups and magic! Bellingham never fails me.

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I started at the ramp that leads to Taylor Dock and sort of wandered from there down to Boulevard Park, and then wandered from the park down the trail that leads to downtown. Along the way I encountered Eric, who I learned was a retired teacher like me – and we talked about the joys of teaching; I ran into my old friend, Dan, with his sweet pup, Jakada, (Jakada just turned a year old yesterday!); and I saw a doe and her youngsters nonchalantly criss-crossing the path in front of a bicyclist who was grinning at them.

When I got to the little loop of the trail that I’d decided would be my turnaround point, I saw a man gazing out at the water from one of the benches there. He was the picture of “peace” and I asked him if I could take his picture. I asked him his name and he told me his name was “Mark Anthony.” “Really?!” I asked, thinking of Cleopatra’s Mark Anthony. And he laughed and said yes, he really was named “Mark Anthony” and he loved having that name. He asked my name and I told him, “Get this – I’m Karen!” And he laughed and said I was one of the good Karens. I grinned back at him, and said, “I love having my name, too!” We shook hands – a “Mark Anthony” and a “Karen” – and wished each other a great day.

When I got back to the park I started back up the boardwalk, and this is when I saw something that made me tear up at the beauty of it: Three people were walking ahead of me on the boardwalk – what I guessed to be a mother with her grown children – and they had their arms around each other as they walked. I thought, “This is what Love looks like.” When they stopped ahead of me, I stopped with them, and told them how touched I’d been by the love I’d seen between them. I learned, then, that the mother, Oonagh (pronounced Ooh-nah), was up from Santa Fe, and her son, Ian, had come from New York City, to visit Annika (Oonagh’s daughter and Ian’s sister), who lives in Bellingham. I could relate to this. I told them my son and his wife and my grandbaby lived in California, and we’d just visited them a few weeks ago. I knew how precious this time together was for them.

I decided to take the steps up to the top of the little knoll that separates one part of the boardwalk from the other. I walked the length of the knoll to Thom Bishop’s bench (I’ve written posts about Thom Bishop’s bench before) and there I ran into a sweet pup named Sage and her human, Bruce, who was sitting on the bench. Sage was very sweet and came up for a pet on the head. I asked Bruce if I could take her picture, and he said sure. So I barked to get her to look at me – and that’s probably why she looks a little surprised.

Back down on the boardwalk, little Guiness pup brought her human over to say hi to me. Guiness put her paws on my legs and smiled up at me and stayed until I gave her some scratches and pets. Such a sweetie!

When I got back to the ramp, Oonagh, who was sitting with her son and daughter on a bench at the bottom of the ramp, called over to me, “Hi Karen!” I smiled at my new friends and said, “There you are!”

At the top of the ramp, I decided I wasn’t done with my walk, yet, and headed for Fairhaven. When I entered the Colophon, I was greeted by the hostess who led me to my favorite table in the corner. Taryn was there today – it was good to see her again. And I was served by a cheery server who was new to me, but fit right in with kindness of the Colophon.

Smiles and pups, new friends and peace. I find the best therapy on my Bellingham walks.

“I walk with Love along the way,
And O, it is a holy day;
No more I suffer cruel fear,
I feel God’s presence with me here;
The joy that none can take away
Is mine; I walk with Love today.”
– Minnie M.H. Ayers, Christian Science Hymnal #139