Weeds--part three

So there I was on Washington Island.   No internet.  No TV.  No matter, I'm a reader.  But I couldn't get into the new best selling mystery I brought along and so scouted the house for something else.  Beneath a pile of fishing magazines, I spotted an old issue of Oprah.  May 2007.
Leafing through it, I came across an article with an intriguing title:  "The Soul Check Up" by Krista Tippett.  She suggested revisiting words that are important in your religious passions.
The word that banged against the inside of my head, trying to get out, isn't exactly religious or passionate.  Old.  Now I've made a certain amount of peace with the concept of aging.  Enjoying its opportunities while managing its challenges is a central them of this blog. 
Old is a whole other story.  Maybe being old isn't the crux of the matter.  It's the next step--dying-- that takes my breath away (nice choice of words that.)  Then what?
Which brings me to one of those religious words that people can get passionate about.  Heaven.  Or hell.  Where hell is concerned, I belong to the Lullie E Martini (my grandmother) school of thought.  There's enough hell on earth to go around, so there's no need for it in the afterlife.    Heaven on earth, on the other hand, in in considerable shorter supply.

Weeds & Other Unexpected Blessings__Part 2

Because we would arrive too late for the last ferry to Washington Island, we made a nuisance

stop in Green Bay Wisconsin.  My image of Green Bay centered around Lambeau Field, the rivalry

between their Packers and my Minnesota Vikings, and hearsay that football-crazed citizens there

painted porches and living rooms Packer green.  My late night sight of the little city downtown

didn't pique my interest further.

What a difference a day made!  My 'weed' stop flowered.  In bright sunlight and cool breeze, I set

out for a walk.  Across the street from the motel, I came upon a walking path lined with scultures 

beside the Fox River.  I spent a wonderful hour walking, enjoying the art, and sitting on a bench for

a brief meditation.  Here's a sample. 

(I just previewed the post and found an accidental poem.  Enjoy.)

"Dancing Light"

Source:  Green Bay Wisconsin Life of the River Website

http://www.ci.green-bay.wi.us/lifeoftheriver/riverart.html

Weeds and Other Unexpected Blessings--1

Queen Anne's Lace flickr image by j godsey

I've just spent some time on Washington Island on Lake Michigan in Door County Wisconsin. 
No TV.  No Internet.  Days spent wandering, wading in the water, reading, playing cards, talking. 
Wild flowers--known as weeds elsewhere says my sister--particularly Queen Anne's Lace, are inter-
spersed with wooded areas, fields of planted crops, homesteads, and shops. 

The place I stayed  was a microcosm of the lifestyles that populate the island.  The property
includes a  meadow of wild flowers, cultivated flower beds that display thistles and goldenrod,
a neglected orchard that's feeding ground for morning deer, a fledging vineyard, and an abandoned
studio that I'm told once housed a loom.  Leaning against another building, a beautifully crafted
sign announces that here original textiles and art works were sold.

These mimic the activities and scenes that proliferate at island center.  At its periphery, of course,
the focus changes to all things big water--boating, fishing, ferrying to the mainland and to a
smaller nearby island that boasts sandy beaches.