Waimarino, does summer get any better?

It doesn't take much. Some sunshine, climbing temperatures and cool water, and voila, a happy summer experience.

To be honest, if you look at Waimarino, it doesn't look like anything out of the ordinary - few diving platforms, home-made water slide, bunch of kayaks and a river/estuary to put them all together. But what makes the perfect summer afternoon is the fun to be had with all these things combined. And don't forget the community spirit. That is what really makes it. We're all having fun in the sun together. And challenging each other.

Me to jump off the five meter high dive. (Have I ever mentioned that I am terrified of heights?) Or the boy who learns to let go of the rope swing - only after swinging back and forth for 10 minutes. Or Juliet who masters the art of paddling a kayak. Maybe she's finally found her sport!

And then there are the boys, of that certain age, who need their testosterone rush for the day. They can kamikaze at great speeds off the water slide, dropping meters into the cool green water. It's such a need for the boys at that age to understand the reality of facing fears and learning to be sensible, and it's good to find a place where they can do it in relative safety. 

Ah, the joys of summer, and the enjoyment of the simple things. It's basic, but the stuff that makes life go from good to great. Enjoy it while it is here. Carpe Diem and enjoy the moment. These are the good old days.

Best ever water slide!

Go Clara.

“And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer.” 
― F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

Homecoming

"If you follow your bliss, you put yourself on a track, that has been there all the while, waiting for you, and the life you ought to be living is the one you are living." Joseph Campbell

Home.

The place of the humdrum, routines, laundry and the longing to be off traveling again.

But then comes the flip side, the after-effect of so much traveling through foreign lands and cultural experiences. Suddenly your old home town is seen through the eyes refreshed. The old landscape a joy to see and old routine suddenly a happy responsibility.


How can you assimilate the things learned along the journey if you don't have this downtime to pause, reflect, and enjoy the moments already there for us?
For isn't that the one thing that we all do when we are completely caught up in the race of life? We leave our bodies to carry on with the mundane tasks of life, while the brain seeks stimulation elsewhere. For me it's traveling and learning and experiencing, for others it is in global politics, and even more common it's in tv shows and video games.

None of those things are in themselves bad, in fact the majority are very good. But the key is very much to keep those fly away moments in perspective with the amazing gift we have each and every day. In the back yard, the new shoot of a tomato plant. A car that has been cleaned and shines. A school report that is finished with pride. Or the friend that is there with a smile and a wave.

If you only ever learn, you never have the chance to apply, and therefore grow.

I know that I will travel again, and hopefully soon! But for the moment I plan to do a little growing. And for me, that is something that must be done while staying in one place.

Namaste ~

The beach that I live on. Free to walk on everyday. Life is good.