Jumping for joy on the bungie trampoline at Mt Washington during my fabulous visit with Sharon and her two lovely daughters.
Having given it some thought, I've concluded with immense gratitude that this has been the best summer of my life. I spent six weeks entertaining enthusiastic audiences at festivals and other venues in so many incredibly beautiful places where I met many fantastic people, rode horses and swam in lakes and ocean. I had two weeks of sheer vacation time spent with dear friends — one week on an island in Georgian Bay, a few days on Gaiano Island in BC and two days at a beach house on Vancouver Island visiting some dear new friends. The past week I was happily engaged in the last module of my holistic massage course on Denman Island and I have just mailed my beautiful certificate home to myself. One of the delicious aspects of this experience was receiving hours of bodywork each day as we traded positions of giver and recipient. My only complaint is that I succumbed to a minor illness which has had me bothered by a persistent tickle in my throat. I have been thankful that I have generally felt fine other than the coughing.
These long days of study were exhausting but I was motivated by such a keen interest and desire to become very good at the work. I am recognizing that I have come to a point in my life where I spend most of my time engaged in things that I am passionate about and am very aware of the privilege of this, even while it has cost me in certain sacrifices at times — financial stability being one. But I am far more interested in richness of experience than material wealth and in this I am wealthy indeed.
My Galiano pal Onli is on her way to Denman and we shall spend the weekend bumming around Hornby Island before I fly back to Toronto from Victoria on Monday. I'll re-enter my Toronto life refreshed, cleansed by moist, forest and ocean air, with new skills, new friends and an enthusiasm for the next chapter. This chapter begins with hunkering down to my first opportunity as sound designer for theatre as I begin work on a beautiful play called Wild Dogs. Concurrently, I'll be working hard at learning a set of material for a new musical project called The Bhadra Collective.
Breakfast with Sharon on the last morning of my visit at her grandmother's adobe in Comox
Sharon's younger daughter Melissa and I became fast friends. She pressed me repeatedly for "gross-out stories" and I delivered many of them over the two-day visit. Here we are returning from having placed some beached starfish back into the ocean.
Galiano rocks
Approaching a grotto in a cliff face during a kayak outing in the waters surrounding Galiano Island
Beautiful reflections on the ceiling of a grotto in a cliff face along the Galiano shore.
My nest in the verdant woods on Denman Island. I slept deeply here after our long days of study.
