Posted on by Jessica Dofflemyer · 4 Comments

Riches of the Earth

Yesterday the sum total due became official. I may have picked up tax documents, but I opted to focus on the distant, gushing waterfalls that poured forth from the verdant cliffs that cradled the accountant’s office. Yes, this is what tax season looks like in paradise. And I chose to keep my eyes to the beauty, despite the larger-than-expected sum we are being taxed. Hold my perspective to the rich streams of water flowing, rather than dwell upon decimals and numbers.

After leaving the accountant, I stopped by our old dwelling. My friend stood there in the garden, overgrown with the eggplant The Bohemian planted there last Fall. She cut and clipped until my bag was overflowing, bursting with kale, cilantro, arugula, papaya, grapefruit, and plenty of eggplant.

Abundance abounds.

Value lives in that which we deem worthy.

What can rival the wealth of the earth?

Thanks to Bryanna Chapeskie’s blog, “The Home of Art” which featured the work of Deanna Staffo in a recent posting. This illustration says it all.

dstaffo5
illustration Deanna Staffo
Posted on by Jessica Dofflemyer

Whoosh of Grace

2014-03-18_albatross in flight

defying all things solid
rigid
hard
the downy, softness of feathers
rises above it all
gentle strength
defies gravity
effortless
soaring
a glide
catching wind
a whoosh
of Grace

 

Thanks to Donna Johnson’s blog “Images and Imaginings” for inspiration on today’s post.

Posted on by Jessica Dofflemyer · 4 Comments

Chop Wood, Carry Water

With the press of the Return key I splinter the cell borders of a spreadsheet, Quit Excel, and move on to master another task. Something simple (sort of). Uncomplicated. Time-tested.

I joked with a friend not long ago about the complexities that come with the comforts of householding. Oh, how I could long for a simpler way. Chopping wood and carrying water sounds concrete, straightforward, no heady accounting or updated software necessary.

Maybe the joke was on me, as within days, the water tank at our house malfunctioned, leaving us with no running water for 48 hours. I found myself lugging 5 gallon buckets from the working tap next door to our kitchen sink. Be careful what you wish for, I reminded myself as I heated wash water on our stove top.

These days, the water’s flowing just fine, but I still find myself grappling with the continual details required to keep our lives organized. And our world is really pretty simple, relative to most. This weekend it was apparent that I could spend all of my time at my desk, computer computing, spreadsheets auto-summing, but what I really wanted was to take a break from my mind.

The Bohemian recently fell an Ironwood tree in order to make room for coconuts. He and I hauled a truck load of the logs to our house, but they needed to be split before they cured. The wood is known to be so hard that if you wait too long, they turn stone-like, too difficult to chop.

Looks like wishes really do come true. As there I was, Excel spreadsheets and paperwork far behind. On Sunday, it was just me and the axe, splitting wood and stacking.

2014-03-17_wood