The Call

In the words of Marianne Williamson: "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we’re liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Happy Halloween

It is a cold day in Suquamish. The thermometer says 42 but with the wind it feels much colder. We walked down to the post office and the gale coming off of the water was icy. The world is awash in color. The maple trees glow in the sunlight. With each gust of wind a blizzard of leaves falls to earth. The kiddos will need to bundle up tonight to stay warm.
Charlotte

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Tribal Journey 2006

Photograph by Larry Bacon

Tribal Journey 2006
A days rest in Suquamish on the way to Muckleshoot. "The Tribal Canoe Journey seeks to honor centuries-old traditions of transport and trade by the coastal tribes of the Northwest, many of which often traveled the waters to meet and gather for festivities. With every dip into the water their strokes bring back the memory of their ancestors. At every landing, custom teaches them the ways of their elders as they ask permission to come ashore." To learn more go here http://www.kingcountyjournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060801/NEWS/608010321

Pow Wow in Suquamish

Photograph by Larry Bacon

Chief Seattle Days
from Kitsap Peninsula Visitor's Bureau

"This historical celebration, held the third week of August every year, features Traditional Native Dance Performances & Competitions, Indian Salmon Dinners, Traditional Canoe Races, Indian Arts & Crafts Vendors, and a Gravesite Ceremony in honor of Chief Seattle. Tribes from throughout the Northwest and beyond are represented. EVERYONE, Native
and Non-Native, is welcome to join in the celebration. "

"The first Chief Seattle Days was held in 1911 in downtown Suquamish and continues to be held on the orginal Celebration Grounds overlooking
Port Madison, Agate Passage and the City of Seattle, the namesake of Chief Seattle. The celebration honors Chief Seattle, the famous Suquamish chief who signed the Treaty of Point Elliott in 1855 that established the Port Madison Indian Reservation and delivered the famous speech used to support the cultural and spiritual values of indigenous people throughout
the world."

"Suquamish is on the Port Madison Indian Reservation, home of the Suquamish tribe. One of the most influential leaders of the Northwest, Chief Seattle, lived much of his life in Suquamish and is buried at Suquamish Memorial Cemetery.

Located along Agate Pass and on Madison Bay, Suquamish enjoys some of Kitsap Peninsula's most spectacular views, looking across Puget Sound at Seattle, the Cascade Mountains and Mt. Rainier. "

Sunday, July 16, 2006

Summer In Suquamish

It is a lovely summer day in Suquamish. Just a few short months ago we wondered where we would be this summer of 2006 and then Karen came into our lives. Karen had an ad on housecarers. We responded and it was a real match for all of us. Karen is a lovely young woman. She is a merchant marine captain and she needed a housesitter for the summer. We are in a lovely spot surrounded by trees and just a 1/2 mile walk to the water where we look across to the skyline of Seattle. We are blessed indeed.
Charlotte

Monday, April 24, 2006

Where to go?

Thinking much today about what the next few weeks will hold. We are planning to move once again. It is a lovely warm day on the Hood Canal. We have been sitting by the water watching the ducks fly about. The seagulls seem to be content to just sit around by the inlet to the river. Larry says he isn't worried about "where" because he knows no matter where we are we will be together. We are looking for another housesit, hopefully in the northwest somewhere.
Charlotte

Thursday, February 09, 2006

Mousetrap

What can we learn from a mousetrap?
A mouse looked through the crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. "What food might this contain?" The mouse wondered - he was devastated to discover it was a mousetrap.
Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning. "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!"
The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it."
The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The pig sympathized, but said, "I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers."
The mouse turned to the cow and said "There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mousetrap in the house!" The cow said, "Wow, Mr. Mouse. I'm sorry for you, but it's no skin off my nose." So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected, to face the farmer's mousetrap alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house -- like the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the farmer's wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital, and she returned home with a fever.

Everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. But his wife's sickness continued, so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.

The farmer's wife did not get well; she died. So many people came for her funeral, the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide enough meat for all of them. The mouse looked upon it all from his crack in the wall with great sadness. So, the next time you hear someone is facing a problem and think it doesn't concern you, remember -- when one of us is threatened, we are all at risk. We are all involved in this journey called life. We must keep an eye out for one another and make an extra effort to encourage one another.

SEND THIS TO EVERYONE WHO HAS EVER HELPED YOU OUT AND LET THEM KNOW HOW IMPORTANT THEY ARE. REMEMBER: EACH OF US IS A VITAL THREAD IN ANOTHER PERSON'S TAPESTRY; OUR LIVES ARE WOVEN TOGETHER FOR A REASON.

Saturday, January 21, 2006

A Foggy Morning In Belfair

Larry: Our home has found us at last. We have rented a small condo on the Hood Canal in Belfair, WA. A succession of synchronous events led us to this place. Our front yard is literally the "toe end" of the Hood Canal, a long, odd arm of the Puget Sound. Our upstairs office widow overlooks a tidal pond that is always bustling with the activities of ducks. I've spotted at least three species so far. Then there are the shore birds - sea gulls and I think Sanderlings. The Sanderlings are funny little birds. They fly in tight formations that form a cloud of alternating white or tan, depending upon which way they turn. How they communicate their decision to turn at exactly the same instant is a mystery. We have a pair of resident bald eagles that we see daily.

Charlotte: This morning the fog is rolling in. I have already seen one of our bald eagles this morning. He likes to sit on the top of an old snag that has washed ashore. There are flocks of robins that have moved in this morning. They are sitting in the tree outside our office window. There are so many Larry said they look like fruit hanging in the tree. We have had many days of rain. The clouds, water, light.....the mood of this place is ever changing. The little salt water inlet to the east is a flurry of activity this morning and ducks of every description scurry here and there. A little songbird stopped by this morning to sit on our back fence and serrenade us. This has happened several times now so I can't help but think that it sees us by the window and comes by intentionally.