Retreat Quiet Time

I have to have "me" time. Preferably every day. It doesn't have to be large chunks of time...but it does have to be alone time. On a normal daily basis, I find small pockets of time that I just grab for a quiet moment. The best "me" time is when I'm not thinking. Not contemplating. Not trying to attain a zen moment. It's just me, alone and quiet. Just for a moment. 

On our retreat, as you've already seen, the setting was perfect for "me time". Just perfect. 

The retreat's topic was relevant and definitely worth exploring. The overall topic was about "connecting" and living in the "now". When we find ourselves living in the moment, we feel replenished.

Inspired, I grabbed my beach chair and headed out to watch the waves and birds. 

I had not gotten settled when I looked out on the water's horizon and saw a single dolphin silently swim by. No drama. No splashing around. Just passing by. A few minutes later he surfaced again. I realized that my breath was catching with excitement. I wanted to get closer. But if I moved would I lose sight of him? I decided to risk it. 

So I ran to the pier. I RAN. I don't know if anyone saw me or what they would have thought. I mean I clearly wasn't going "out for a run". I ran to the pier and ran to the end of the pier with my camera in tow. It's a point and shoot (I left the SLR at home). So there I am at the end of the pier waiting and trying to guess where he will surface next. 

It was then that I realized that the camera has absolutely nothing to save it from being dropped and lost in the ocean. No strap to put around my wrist...nothing. Here I must tell you that it isn't "technically" my camera. It's my husband's. And much like someone being told "don't drop this", all I could think was "I'm going to drop this". 

"Focus," I told myself. Stop being afraid of dropping the dang camera and take some pictures. Oops, he was just on the surface and now he's under again. He is silent. Just silent. He's so close to me that I know he will be passing by any minute. I begin to count to see how long between surfacing. I wanted to time when to snap the picture. Snapping the picture when I see him is too late. He's already below the water before the shutter finishes the shot.

Dolphin about to go back under. See the blowhole?

He's up again. I push the shutter down and try to have the camera do a rapid series of shots. Instead, the camera freezes. It takes minutes between shots. So when I take a shot too soon, the camera is locked when the dolphin surfaces and is actually there for a picture. I was living in the moment. Right? Experiencing nature and enjoying one of God's creatures. Except, I wasn't.  I was stressed! The camera was distracting me from my "serenity now" moment. So I just stopped. I put the camera in my pocket...trying not to think un-church like thoughts about the stinking camera. I took several deep breaths and decided to be quiet and still. 

I was rewarded. There were several dolphins in the water. They were not swimming in a school, they were each having their own quiet alone time. Silently gliding by. And then I saw two fins gliding together. As they got closer I saw it was a cow and her pup. They were swimming in concentric circles going further and further out each time. The baby moving in time with the mother. Beautiful.

I did get some pics to share (though not of the mother and baby). It's about balance, right? Balance the stress of "getting the shot" with the serenity of just watching. 

In the midst of running to the pier for my photo op, I forgot to bring my glasses. I need them for close up. What that meant is that I could not see what I was photographing in the camera's small LED screen. I was "shooting blind". At one point, when I was sure I had gotten several shots of the dolphin, I looked at the camera and realized it was pointed at the SKY! 

I've Fallen (down a rabbit hole) and I Can't...

Tonight I was almost giddy to be able to tell you about a new writer I found. Her story was so spot on that it made my heart sing. 

But then, as the title of the post suggests, I fell down a rabbit hole. Hopefully, this post will have enough continuity to be worth reading. I'm feeling very extemporaneous tonight. Which thing to tell you about first?? Okay, I think I will go with the new writer and her story. Then after that, I will give you a hint about the rabbit hole.

Here goes:
Today started like any other workday. Well, that isn't entirely true. My boss (a really great boss), took a vacation for the next two days. He never takes a vacation. He's really great to work with and he is great about letting me know how much he values my work. He works hard. I used to think I work hard. But he works REALLY hard. He's passionate about what we do and I'm proud to be on his team. I know for a fact that he does not read my blog...or any social media for that matter, so all of those accolades I just paid him are simply to tell you that my boss is great and he never takes a vacation. Having him take a vacation (out of town on a trip with his family) gave me the opportunity to see him almost in vacay mode. He was in a super good mood yesterday and SUPER FOCUSED. Which meant I was super focused because we had a lot to get done in just a half-day. So today, I was not as focused as I usually am. Don't know if my brain was a little fried/frayed...or what. But that is what I mean by the day was a little different than usual.

Certainly not to imply that I didn't work today...I did...but I wasn't as efficient as I usually am...or wanted to be. Anyway, I had to make some corrections to a co-worker. And here is where my day got interesting.

In her office was a beautiful painting of a beachy landscape. When she told me that the painting was by her granddaughter I was even more intrigued. I really loved the color and brush strokes. I couldn't take my eyes off the work. I asked if it was an oil painting because I've only used acrylic and I have this sense that oil may be "better" for large intense painting. But, no, it is acrylic. And, the granddaughter is in the 9th grade. Incredible!

After I couldn't stop talking about the painting my friend told me that her granddaughter's short story is published in a new book/anthology available on Amazon. What?? Yeah. The good news is that my friend had a copy of the story (not the book yet) and let me read it. 

It's been a while since I've enjoyed a good short story. So, while I was on lunch break I took the short story to read. It was great. Just great! I was hooked right away. I could "see" her setting and I ached for her characters. BUT, I also loved the hope that her story showed. So many wonderful "truisms" that really spoke to me today. Just reading this little story reminded me of the specialness of connecting with other people.

The story also reminded me to pay attention to happy little moments. Happy Little Moments are sometimes more than enough. 

Here is the book where the story is published. I haven't purchased the book yet, but I feel compelled to for this story alone. If you are curious, check it out on Amazon. There are snippets of a few of the stories that can give you an idea of the stories. If you take a look I think you will be able to guess which story made my heart full. If you are curious and want to make a guess...do so in my comments and I'll reply.

The Harford County Public Library has collected some of the best short stories the county's teenage population has to offer! 

Beach Retreat

This past weekend I went on a Beach Retreat with the women in my church. We were on Oak Island. I've never been there before but found it to be lovely. Here are a few pictures I took while I was there.

Our Retreat theme was "Relax, Rejuvenate, Reflect and Re-connect". The setting was perfect for all of those things.

I'm still processing some of the things we explored. It was a difficult transition back to real life on Monday. Sunday was in the 60*s. Monday was cold, rainy, and sleet. What a difference!

But like they say: "In like a Lion out like a Lamb".