Sagetribe- Adventures From Our Village

This Moment

{this moment}

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{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

A Good Day for a Pinata

Cinco de Mayo came early for us thanks to Clark's Spanish teacher and a brown paper bag pinata filled with candy. 

There is just something about hitting a swinging object with all ones MIGHT

over and over, and waiting for that moment when candy explodes across the floor...I even found myself snatching up a jelly bean that flew by my foot and stuffing it in my mouth, only to moments later remember that I actually don't like jelly beans, 

but for the wee people, it is blissful. Maybe not as blissful to the girl as those blue nails I have to keep repainting, but pretty close!

It's been a long day; a day where I could have really used some good pinata swings and sent some candy flying, but family snuggle time while reading Phineas and Ferb, a wine date with a friend I miss seeing daily, a camp out in the backyard (maybe this weekend) and our CSA starting on Saturday, makes long days OK, maybe even better than OK. 

Happy Early Cinco de Mayo and Friday to you!

Spring Rain

 

Last Night the Rain Spoke to Me 

by Mary Oliver

 

Last night
the rain
spoke to me
slowly, saying, 
what joy
to come falling
out of the brisk cloud, 
to be happy again
in a new way
on the earth! 

That’s what it said
as it dropped, 
smelling of iron, 
and vanished
like a dream of the ocean
into the branches
and the grass below.

Then it was over.
The sky cleared.
I was standing
under a tree.

The tree was a tree
with happy leaves, 
and I was myself, 
and there were stars in the sky
that were also themselves
at the moment
at which moment
my right hand
was holding my left hand
which was holding the tree
which was filled with stars
and the soft rain –

imagine! 

imagine! 

 the long and wondrous journeys
still to be ours.

Rhubarb Apple Crisp

Until quite recently, I'd never heard of rhubarb. I'd never seen a stalk, and didn't even know it was a stalk, but two weeks, determined to try something new, a rather cute old farmer complete with straw hat and bibs sold me my first bundle. I paid my five dollars, not knowing if that was a good price or not, and happily stuck them into my bag determined to make a pie that afternoon. 

The stalks sat in my crisper drawer and sat. I'd open it to retrieve lettuce and carrots, more lettuce and assorted other greens, but never did I pull the poor rhubarb out. The stalks, I could tell, were beginning to get tired of their place in the crisper drawer. They begin to wilt and brown...

I knew they were going to end up like so many veggies I have, in the past, let go to rot simply because I was too weary of them.

No, not this time! Last night, as I tucked the big kid into bed, I found myself wanting something sweet. Then I remembered. The rhubarb...I have the rhubarb, if it's not too late. I soon found myself pouring spices and cutting apples and...rhubarb. Yes, I managed to save many of the stalks from my neglect and they cut quite beautifully while omitting a smell quite unlike any I have experienced. To be honest, I'm not sure if it was pleasant...

Not feeling in the mood to dirty too many dishes or spend all night mixing dough, I simply made the pie filling and covered the top with oats, brown sugar, and pecans. 

It was

DELISH! Especially with Brown Cow Maple Syrup yogurt on top!

Here's what I did. The spice mixture was taken from Deborah Madison's Local Flavors. (Do you have this cookbook? Have you tried Brown Cow?)

Preheat oven to 350

In a bowl toss-

2 large or 4 small apples cut into small bite sized pieces

5 stalks of rhubarb sliced, also cut into small bite sized pieces

1tsp of cinnamon

1/4 tsp of allspice

1/4 tsp of cloves

1/4 tsp of nutmeg

1/2 c of maple syrup (real)

2 TB of flour (white or whole wheat)

Once everything is nice and coated, put the filling into a glass dish, and sprinkle the top with the following

1/2 c of oats

Sprinkling of brown sugar

pecans (chopped)

Bake at 350 for an hour covered. When it's done, give it a good stir and serve warm with yogurt or ice cream or maybe just eat it out of the big dish. 

I'm not sure how other rhubarb pies/crisps taste since this is my first, but I can say that we'll be planting these lovely stalks in the years to come and we may just be having dessert every night!

Happy Rhubarb trying to you!

Breathing

Breathing in woodsy air

with critters scattering

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

at the sound of my children's questions

and squeals

and "look what I've found!"

while moving slowly,

sometimes so slowly,

makes breathing indoor air with its to dos 

that much easier to take in and exhale. 

Happy Weekend, Family Time, and Breathing in Good Things to YOU!

We've Been

jamming to Phineas and Ferb songs 

"104 Days of Summer Vacation..." (I wish!)

"Gitchy Gitchy Goo, Baby!"

and learning how to snap, while Mama figures out her NEW camera!

The wee girl is doing EXACTLY what the brother does

with a little more sass.

We've been conferencing with parents for too many hours to count, making tortillas from scratch (no need to buy them...easy and they rock), getting massages (thanks M and D G!), and getting over fevers and rashes, which have thankfully been very mild. 

We've been rearranging furniture, putting wee people back in their beds over and over, turning the heat on and off and on and off, and reading poetry in a room full of lovely women. 

The whole foods class wrapped up this week; next week my writing workshop ends, and in five weeks school is out for summer, and I say goodbye to three seniors and our building (OH YES, my school is moving again!)

Thankfully the goodbyes are all good things and thankfully new cooking and writing classes have already been signed up for. The heat will be turned off for good, the rashes and fevers will pass. 

We've been trying to maintain some grace and order while the crazy end of school days creep up, and remember that soon these crazy days will pass and new crazy days, without a big guy, will be here. No need to wish these days away. They are good, mostly calm, and when all else fails, we have a new toy to capture it all with!

Thankful!

 

Sunday Still Life

Sunday Still Life is an evolving mindfulness project; an weekly invitation to pause the busy of our days, to re-center and celebrate the beauty and depth of life. 

This girl- this "I DON'T HAVE TO!" girl- is busy with Mama's mascara, toilet bowl cleaner (thank God for chemical free), frozen chocolate chips (OH YES, she's found my stash), sips of coffee, and other things that give us all a fright and a sigh, and many quiet moments of reflection (aka: time outs) for everyone involved. 

This girl is keeping the big guy and I quite busy because we obviously can't be busy when she's around. We need to be right there- in the moment- with her, and really, where else in the world would we rather be.

I'm hearing and seeing quiet and loud signs that we need to SLOW DOWN...

These kids of ours are truly the best teachers. 

This Moment

{this moment}

 A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Sunday Still Life

Sunday Still Life, at Erin's exhale.return to center, is an evolving mindfulness project; an weekly invitation to pause the busy of our days, to re-center and celebrate the beauty and depth of life.

We're celebrating a big day with family, friends, food, and lots of silly children putting on Karate shows.

We're hunting for snakes in the woods, dodging rain showers, and eating at our favorite place to eat, other than home. 

We're missing our farmer's market morning and Sunday hike, but know that they will return next week and this weekend good things replaced them.

I'm spending a little bit too much time this weekend working, but this will end soon. Oh yes, six weeks soon!

Happy Birthday to My Lobster

My lobster is 35 today. Thirteen years older than the day we met at the fountain, Nagi's cold nose kissing me though he had no clue who I was. Maybe he knew. Thirteen years older than our first "date" at Rileys. Thirteen years older than our first hike to the Cascades. Thirteen years older than our road trip to Vegas. Thirteen years older than the first I love you.

My lobster is 35 today. Twelve years older than the day I met his parents. Twelve years older than his graduation from college. Twelve years older than the day his toothbrush appeared in my bathroom.

 

My lobster is 35 today. Eleven years older than the day he proposed. Eleven years older than our first house, first cat, first grown up furniture.

 

My lobster is 35 today. Ten years older than our wedding and hikes through Victoria's rainforests. Ten years older than my second career change in two years.

 

My lobster is 35 today. Nine years older than my third career change in three years, a new digital camera, and a Native American villiage built from scratch. 

  My lobster is 35 today. Eight years older than my first job as a teacher.

 

My lobster is 35 today. Seven years older than a loss of a friend. Seven years older than a wobbling, big bellied wife. Seven years older than a new home and a new four legged critter.

 My lobster is 35 today. Six years older than a new Clark!

My lobster is 35 today. Five years older than a big move, loss of a job, gain of an education, love of a new town.

  My lobster is 35 today. Four years older than being a graduate assistant, finding each other again, and having a toddler.

My lobster is 35 today. Three years older than finding out our family would soon become four. Three years older than finding himself in the midst of the Smithsonian's stash.

 

My lobster is 35 today. Two years older than the birth of a Sophie, a summer in DC, a good year full of crazy twists and turns.

My lobster is 35 today, one year older than plan B, which turned out for the better.

My mate for life is 35 Today! Happy Birthday, Babe- It's been the best 13 years of my life, for sure!