Friday, February 6, 2009

Friday Foto: Sacred Places

Before we get started, heads up to this contest. If you are not famliar with SITS (The Secret is in the Sauce - see sidebar for badge), it is a great blog run by the sweetest ladies in the blogoshere. Very supportive. Lots of contests. The latest is a really great one, so check it out.

Now, back to today's post...

My walks keep me healthy. My husband gave me an I-shuffle (which, according to my students is an embarrassingly ghetto version of the coveted contraption) and this addition has added an essential element to my walking that I had not realized was missing. The walks are, in part, to clear my head and center myself. Too much of my focus is in the mental processes. My Chi Kun therapist and my acupuncturist both have told me that my energy needs to be in my “furnace,” (center-just above the belly button). Not in my head. Which can lead to migraines. Stress. Stress can lead to illness. Want to stay in remission. Must. Clear. Head.

HOWEVER, there are times where I find myself mentally preoccupied with less than stellar thoughts while pacing down the trails. Or, some irritating song gets stuck in my head.

Presto bingo, enter the magic I-shuffle. Sets the mood. Blast the thoughts from my brain.

Off we go.

BC Says welcome to the bike path.
First stop, the “feral” kitty cats. Along this bike path, which is one of my walks, there are dozens of “wild” cats. I’m not sure why Hawaii has so many homeless kitties. I have heard that people move and leave their cats. I don’t know anyone who does that. But along this bike path there are a dozen or more places where a pride of cats has claimed their turf. There are ladies who walk with a wagon every evening and feed the kitties. They catch the ones they can, take them to the Humane Society, have them fixed, then bring them back. Most of the cats come out to see if you are going to feed them. One or two like attention and want to be pet.

One of my best friends gave me a book when I was going through chemo called The Ultimate Healing. It is based on Buddhism and has meditation techniques to promote healing through a grave illness. One chapter was about doing good deeds for animals and the tranquility and peace this creates. I got BC that year. And I feed the feral cats. I don’t have a wagon, so I bring a bag that I can carry and feed the little ones that look like they get bullied from the food.


The long and winding road, that leads.....
To the gazebo. A sometimes stretching spot.
Sunrise on the piers.
Deep breath in. Slow breath out. Deep breath in. Slow breath out. There is something about being surrounded by water, standing on the end of the pier, that cannot be duplicated with yoga and breathing exercises in my living room. This is my favorite yoga spot.
A second before you hear it. A second before you see it. You sense it. And there it is. The still surface of the water suddenly erupts as a school of fish changes directions and for a brief moment they simultaneously break through the water’s surface. The orchestra of a coordinated swoosh. A hundred little splashes. BC starts and trembles and for a second thinks about bolting.

Only one time it was not a school of fish. Right there in front of us a baby sting ray came flying out of the still surface of the water. It performed an acrobatic air bank and for a second looked like it was copying one of the planes that flies overhead on its way to the airport for a landing. A black shadow with a long black tail. Held in mid-air for a second not fifteen feet in front of BC and me. Take a picture with your mind, ain’t no time for cameras. A little gift from the sea.

It was gone in another second. We stood for a long time hoping for another show, but it was only meant to happen once. Sometimes, that’s just the way it is.
Then, it is time to turn around and head back.
Thanks for stopping by for a little slice of PseudoLand.
For more Friday Fotos, head on over to Candid Carrie's.

32 comments:

Mama Dawg said...

If I'm ever in Hawaii, I want to go on a walk with you. I'd love to feed those kitties and see those sites.

hillgrandmom said...

Beautiful-pictures and words! Can just see that baby sting ray in my mind.

Casey said...

Ahh, thanks for the relaxation. I could see that stingray flipping in my head.

I can't believe people would leave their cats behind... it's terrible!

My SIL has an iPod Shuffle and she loves it since it's so tiny and she runs every day with it.

Pseudo said...

Mama -anytime. You and LOML will will get the grand tour of all the best walks and hikes and beaches.

hillgrandma - i still have it in my mind too.

casey - i love it for the same reason. you hardly know it is there it is so light.

Kristan said...

Aw, so sweet of you to feed the kitties.

I LOVE that second pier shot!

And hey, I'm contemplating an iShuffle! I don't think it's ghetto at all. (In fact, it works by default in much the way I listen to my music: always shuffling a subset of my larger music collection, depending on what I've felt like listening to lately.)

Mariah said...

I love Hawaii but WHY are there so many homeless kitties???

"The sometimes stretching point"
Classic.

Debbie said...

I think I might even get my lazy booty up to walk in a place that beautiful.

Sarah's Blogtastic Adventures said...

That was soo cool. The bike path by me just has a guy that flashes you and lots of bugs! : )

Happy Weekend.

mo.stoneskin said...

You live in a beautiful place, I'm very envious.

Nothing wrong with the Shuffle. I live off a ten quid un-branded player!

Michele said...

What a beautiful walk. Thanks for taking us along. I love yoga. That would be a fine spot for it.

cheatymoon said...

I love love love this post. Gorgeous words and images and whatta pier. BC is so adorable and such a happy companion.

Have a great weekend, pseudo

Smart Mouth Broad said...

That is so beautiful. Thanks for taking us along on your walk. If I lived there, I wouldn't need the gym.

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful and serene place for a walk. Your little buddy is scrumptious and I know border collies (looks like one) have endless energy.

Fragrant Liar said...

Absolutely beautiful. What a great place to walk, and among the kitties! I would love that. I can imagine doing yoga at the end of that dock, too. Inspirational.

KJ

Joanie said...

Hawaii is on my list of places I want to vist before I die.
I am a closet Dog the Bounty Hunter fan (Leland is HOT!!!) and the other night, they were tracking someone in Ewa Beach! I thought that was cool.

Pseudo said...

The yoga on the pier is limited to standing postions. The dead fish smell and who knows what else would keep me from lying down. I do downward dog though. I like looking at everything upside down. Then I walk stright to th restrooms at the park and wash my hands.

The kitties out there seem pretty content...

WV= restingo. no shit.

Rikki said...

What a serene journey - thank you! Especially since my house has snow up to the windowsills!

Poor kitties (Bubbles would totally swoop in and take care of all of them!) - that's fantastic that you and the ladies love them like you do.

Anonymous said...

Awww... how relaxing! I'll take one of those kitties! You know in Florida they have a lot of feral cats and they are mainly abandoned by apt dwellers that move and leave them-tragic.

Anna Lefler said...

Beautiful! Your blog is total mental nourishment...every time.

Sending big (((hugs))) across the ocean to you...

(There's slack-key guitar playing in my head but you probably can't hear it.)

XO

Anna

Anonymous said...

Ahh ..... and that is exactly what I need. Maybe I'll fly over if Briefcase can accumulate some free miles for me. You could teach me to be tranquil cuz I'm flunking the concept lately.

♥ Braja said...

The wild kitties are possibly reincarnated surfers who wanted to come back, live by the beach, have no family or responsiblity, and just hang, dude :)

Pseudo said...

Oh, I love the idea of the kttties being reincarnated surfers. They sure do just hang. Sunbathing is it for them.

Bijoux said...

I'm still using a CD player for my walks. I have to ask - isn't that ipod shuffle easy to lose? The thing is the size of my thumb.

Thanks for stopping by my place. I'm envious of the beauty that surrounds you!

Heather said...

Wow!! Beautifully written....for a moment I felt like I was walking with you!!!

Pancake said...

Well thought out and well said. I am so jealous of the warmth and beauty you are surrounded by!

Anonymous said...

Nice post...felt like i was right there on the walk. That's what it looks like at the lake here in the summer...which is unfortunatly overrun with tourists at that time of year.

and the iPod shuffle sounds like my itty bitty $25 mp3 player which i cannot get on the treadmill without (can't use it on the trail as must stay aware to keep stewie from certain accidental death at his own hand LOL)...

kitties=reincarnated surfers is a very cool idea

and wv? = shatipsy (which sounds like a lady-like version of being 'sh*tfaced'

'I got pretty shatipsy drinking too many bellini's last night' :)

Pseudo said...

I think I'll get shatipsy tonight...

David said...

Ok colour me the shade of green in all of those beautiful pictures. Then invite me one day to do the walk with you and all the others who just drooled on your web page.
wonderful!

Beth said...

My favorite picture is the first one of the dog. He looks like he is smiling.

I like the calming effect your pictures have. Ahhhh...

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the journey. Beautiful.

Rhea said...

Oh, please, keep taking me with you on your walks! What a wonderful post. I love the feral kitties, the peaceful walk, the beautiful sites, and the fish and sting ray! AWESOME!

Anonymous said...

Absolutely beautiful!
Stopping by from SITS