Aware of My Senses on this Summer Day in July

                                                                                                                                 

I breathe in and I breathe out

I breathe in and I breathe out

and once again I breathe in and I breathe out

All of senses are engaged as I sit in this quiet space on my deck

At this time

At this place

Today

Now

Breathe ...

Just

Breathe

It seems I am aware that all my senses want to say something.

I sip the beautiful reddish pink drink that I mixed up minutes ago

The taste of raspberry meets coconut meets banana

I will make this again but for right now

I savour the exquisite taste in my mouth

The taste of summer

I shut my eyes and let my sense of hearing perk up.

Motorcycles on Henderson, all planes flying above the house

The sound of the leaves rustling, blowing, the flag snapping in the wind

The sound of birds the driving past of cars

The beautiful song of the wind chime

The hum of a chainsaw somewhere 

I savour this moment with eyes shut and the opening up of ears to hear things that I may otherwise miss

The beautiful sounds of summer

I take a deep breath, head tilted up toward the sky

Breathing in the air around me

And today the smell of campfire is once again in the air

Flowers that filled the air a few weeks ago, have bloomed and fallen

I breathe in again and smell the earthy scent of wood chips on the side driveway

But unfortunately the smell of campfire which I normally love

Is really the smell of the smoke coming from northern fires raging out of control

As it means people have lost homes, and businesses and been forced out of communities due to wildfire.

It is the smell of summer for the past month (and we are warned not to be outside too much)

I open my eyes and look around me

Seeing creation at its best

Even the weeds are thriving in their colourful array

Bullrushes from last year look tired and a bit fluffy as they wait for the new ones to take their place.

I see the new growth on our pine trees and spruces

The new growth makes them look whimsical

I see the blueish tinges on the boughs of the blue spruce, the different coloured greens in the bush in front of me, the small red berries on the bush that seemed to sprout just because it wanted to, and was native to this area.

I see the flag waving in the wind, with a reminder that I need to buy a new one.  I see the haze of smoke in the air, and the grey clouds covering the sky, with the occasional glance of the sun through it all

I see the garden that we have tended to

I see the birds flitting, the one on the grass looking for a bug or two, I see the trees swaying and the leaves shaking.  I see the pods on the one tree hanging like little monkeys and swaying in the breeze.

I see the deck around me, the house behind me, and the deckchair I am sitting in

I see the tall wild grass swaying and the wrought iron wind mill moving

I see the different colours of brown in the wood chips, and the weathered poles of our pole fence in front of our house

I see pinecones hanging on pine boughs and planters that are empty because I didn’t get annuals bought and planted

I see the boughs of the shrubs coming through the planks on our deck.  

I see another small plane as it whizzes across the sky above us and the annoying flies that are buzzing around me

I see the sights of summer in abundance

I breathe in while shutting my eyes

What is it that I feel?

I feel the warmth of this day combined with the cooler temp

I feel the breeze that blows across my bare arms and face

I feel a breeze come up through the deck onto my bare toes

I feel a stronger breeze come out of seemingly no where, and it feels cool

I pull my chair forward and I feel the sunshine on my feet, and the warmth flooding over my toes

I feel the tangible touch of summer over and on me

It makes me smile

I am alive

My senses aware of what is around me

The things I taste, and see

The things I hear and feel

I

Am

Alive

And then I go in and down

Into the depth of my being

Aware that I am also feeling things within

Within my heart

Within my soul

Within my emotions

And I feel like I just want to stop here

At this time

At this place

Breathing in

Breathing out

There is so very much that has been packed down deep

To be opened on the right day

Although to be honest, I am not sure what the right day is

Or if it is today

Somehow it feels okay to just sit with it a bit longer

And to savour it all

And unpack the deep container on another day

And really, 

I think that is just fine to sit with it a while longer

The full container does not alter what I am tasting, feeling, hearing, seeing at this time

If anything it would perhaps bring a bigger awareness, a greater depth to my story

I feel quite okay with sitting with it

I feel the affirmation from LOVE that in this summer, 

I can continue to hold this all close

today

at this time

at this place

Be still my soul