Last night I ended my post with the words, “Until then I’ll be patient (and gentle with myself) and enjoy the scenery along the way.” I was talking about how, even when we take small steps they are still moving us toward our destination, though perhaps not as fast as we want or think we need to be going. Someone replied by asking simply, “What scenery?”
I thought about it for a moment and replied in a somewhat offhand manner, not really addressing the question. So tonight I am allowing myself to think about the scenery. Over the course of the weeks and months since I lost my job and moved about 10 miles away from where I’d been living, I’ve spent a lot of time driving back and forth those 10 miles and beyond to get to the various destinations I need to go. On many of those rides the traffic is clogged and I really have to attend to the business of driving in the midst of anywhere from four to six lanes of traffic. But when I the traffic is not bad or when I actually get off the highway for a few minutes and can actually look around at where I am driving I remember that I live in a very beautiful area.
When I take my time and drop off of the congested highway, I can get on the Frontage Road that skirts along the San Francisco Bay. The sun off the water at just about any time of day is something that I miss if I’m hurrying along to some destination. On that drive, depending on where I am I can see two or three key bridges connecting the East Bay to the city–including the world famous Golden Gate Bridge. There are mountains and hills and headlands all around me, forested areas, shorelines, marshes all along the drive. And all along the shore are gulls and egrets and all manner of birds that are all visible from the road. Sometimes when I am stuck in six lanes of traffic, I forget the beauty that is right there if I simply turn aside to go see it. It reminds me that I need to stop the car altogether and take advantage of the scenery, the wonders that are right in my back yard.
If I allow myself to get so busy being caught up in whatever drama life appears to have directed at me that I fail to take in something beautiful, then truly woe is me. It reminds me of the line from Alice Walker’s The Color Purple, “I think it pisses God off when you walk by the color purple in a field and don’t notice it.” I’m not sure if it pisses God off or not, I don’t think about it that way. I know that my life is richer when I take the time to breathe in all the beauty that all around me and if that makes God happy in the process that makes it all the sweeter!
The San Franciso Bay at Sunset
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