Morning walk...

This morning I decided to take my camera with me on my walk with Griff.

I haven't been taking many photos lately, but it was a beautiful, cool morning

and the tide was out; perfect for a walk on the beach...

This is Muir creek...named after the naturalist John Muir who lived not far from here

in the early days of pioneers...

The pacific ocean flows in and out of the creek twice a day and at low

tide you can walk along the beach for a few miles.

There was the usual sights and sounds along the shore...seagulls...

Seals basking in the morning sun...

Acres and acres of seaweed...

This beach is sometimes called the fossil beach because of the ancient layers of

seashells embedded in the cliffs and boulders...

Aren't they beautiful with their swirls and curls?

Wild asters lined the shore as well...

Hanging gardens adorning the cliff face...

Well worn stumps of driftwood as well...

As I walked along I was remembering the last time I was here.

It was last August with my sister and her girls.

We spent a gorgeous summer afternoon here, with food and ciders and the dogs...

playing on the giant logs and boulders.

And then the most interesting thing happened...

...right at the exact spot where we had spent the day picnicking

a flock of crows showed up...

If you don't know, my sister had a thing about crows...

She fed them everyday and had a collection in her house of everything 'crows'...

 They weren't anywhere else on this massive stretch of coast.

Ravens are the usual corvids around here, not crows.

Ravens are much bigger and tend to dominate the crow population, so when this

group of about 10 or 15 showed up, I thought it quite magical...

 I'm struggling along these days and trying to pick my way along this rough road before us...

Up and down, good and bad days but time is a healer 

and my morning walks are all part of it.

Meditating on the days gone by and looking to the ones ahead

but mostly being here in these moments of the present.

Holding on to these moments of gratitude for having  her in my life...all be it too brief.

'Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul.'

 

John Muir

And so we carry on...

 The Sunday following my sisters passing was her youngest girls 8th birthday.

We all agreed to go on with the party as planned.

You see, this 8 year old needed a good happy day in her life and this day was all about her.

 Although my sister passed away in the house, we all wanted the kids to feel that

this was still a happy house.

Doors flung open to the sun and the summer breezes flowed through, the sound of dogs barking,

wind chimes, music and of course children's laughter.

 The ladies who worked with my sister came over while Stephanie (birthday girl) was at her grandma

and grandpas for the morning to decorate the yard.

You would have thought it was a real live princess' birthday with all of the treats and surprises they came equipped with.

 These are the people who make this world go round.
Even when things are upside down.
Thank you.