It was my junior or senior year in high school when I fell in love with poetry. I think like a lot of people I had a preconceived idea of what poetry was and I had decided it wasn’t for me. Since English was my first class of the day, I used to put on makeup while sitting at my desk, and my nerdy friend Keitha watched as I lined my eyes or curled my lashes.
Okay, okay, maybe domestic goddess is too strong a term, but I do enjoy cooking, keeping a clean house, and staying at home. When it’s cold out, I’ve been known to pick up my crochet needles. I can build a fire to warm up a winter home. I love to bake. (I miss baking! Thai apts do not have ovens!) I’m not particularly great at sewing, but I can mend simple things. I like gardening and having plants. I also love power tools, and I’m not afraid of a little DIY. I believe because I enjoy simple domestic activities that I’m a happier person for it.
Despite my small role as a chaperone, the humidity, heat, and great fear of wild monkeys, I enjoyed our trip to Khao Yai National Park. Khao Yai is a World Heritage Site declared by UNESCO, includes rain and evergreen forests and grassland, and is home to “more than 800 fauna species, including 112 species of mammals, 392 species of birds and 200 reptiles and amphibians.”
Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home. – Matsuo Basho
I’ve done a lot of moving in my life in attempt to discover where I belong. I’ve moved from Portland, Oregon, down to Chico, California, then further still to Oceanside, California. And when we were fed up with the West Coast, we decided to give Alabama, my then-boyfriend’s home state, a try. After that, it was Thailand.
It’s been years since I wrote a painful-but-true Valentine’s Day post, so I thought I’d dust off the ‘ol corners of the brain, and pull out the EMBARRASSING MOMENTS file for your stupid holiday pleasure. Enjoy.
Many years ago, I was chatting with an old college friend and he confided that he always felt like one of the keys to a perfect life was eluding him.
“What do you mean?” I said.
Continue reading “Looking back to move forward: What changes will you make this year?”
