The Wind In/Out Of My Sails

I'm back now from the adventure which was this past weekend. We explored the desert island on foot (two Peregrine falcons on the lighthouse!) and by sea (by kayak into the dark cave filled with riotous water but fortunately no Medusa!). The miracles of the Channel Islands never cease to amaze, challenge, and satisfy me.

This time we had some rain. We were warm and dry in our tent as the wind gusted and the rain poured. Some of our intrepid colleagues weren't so lucky. JO spent most of the night huddling in his raincoat watching his tent flailing rabidly above his head. That was because it was shaped more like a parachute than a tent. It finally went over at around 4am (fortunately it didn’t dampen his enthusiasm for the trip – since returning he’s already picked out a much sturdier replacement). The good thing for all of us is that by the time the morning came, the wind had shifted and the clouds had begun to break up. We ate breakfast and swam in the ocean under a nearly clear, bright blue sky.

And now I’m back home and happy. Strangely, or maybe not so, the time away has made the whole fixation of the past few weeks on the election season seem a little tiresome. I am continuing to pay attention, but for today, at least, I’m not too concerned. All the buzz and the jostling for position and the endless reams of opinion and commentary and opinions about the commentary seem very far away from the stillness which descends, which can be found without too much effort, if you only take a step outside the circle of noise. We live so much of our lives inside the circle and we fool ourselves into believing that there is nothing more. Thank God for the things that remind us of the truth.