Mindfulness Walk to Dharamkot-Beautiful!
Hi all,
Ocotber 20th, 2005
The funniest thing happened yesterday. I was looking for something in my "travel drawer" and I came across my handwritten journal from last year's trip to India. Opened it to a page at random just for fun and came across this following entry, which, funny as it may seem, never made it to the computer last year, although it is one of the most beautiful days I remember, and for some reason just stayed in the handwritten notebook. Even funnier, it was written exactly one year to the day! On
October 20th, 2004! (My mother's birthday last year)
So I am sending it to myself for safe keeping and figured some of you might appreciate it, and, as always, feel free to delete if you are not in the mood.
As always...my love
Just walked up TIPA road to Dharamkot after not taking that orad in about 2 weeks. And it's as if I am walking someplace for the first time. Seems familiar but no place I've actually been this tripl No more whizzing sickshaws to jump aside from or taxi's r;ushing up blowing their horns. And only 2 other people were seen the whole way up. As a matter of fact, the only human sound accompanying me the whole way up was the occassional scrape of my hiking boots on the road or the soft rustling of my heans as my legs brushed against each other.
And so the forest came alive! At one place there was a tree standing alone with 18(!) ravens on it just enjoying thier perches in the sun and "chatting" quietly with each other. None of their usual shouting and squacking to disturb the peace of the day. It's as if the change has relaxed them as well. Further up a little hollow in the wood filled with layers of flitting butterlies. Also seeming to have been invited as well to enjoy the peace of the forest.
And the foliage has all become richer and greener and more luxuriant. The fronds on the ferns are enormous with brown stems running through their centers. Some as large as huge banana leaves. And the mosses have spread to cover enormous spaces that used to be just dark damp earth. One kind had little "leaves" in the shape of stars with miniscule white pointed "flowers" almost like sitting atop the "leaves". The cicadas no longer competing with the vehicles or human voices are heard in full force. And many different kinds of bird calls can be heard from the trees. The sun is gloriously warm and blessedly obscured from time to time by the shade of the forest. Making the walk the perfect combination of cold crispness and warmth.
As I approached Dharamkot, even the lilting voices of the school children seemed almost in aintrusion.
A few sparse lower branches seem connected by enormous spider webs.
One lone butterfly disappearing inside a clumpf of low lying rhodedendran.
A few lonely rays of suncshine manage to beam their way through the thickness of the 20-30 meter hi pines to rest on the forest floor which is a combination of pine needles, low greenergy, rocks and moss covered earth.
Surrounded completely on all sides by toal silence, except for the ever present cicadas and distant dcalll of ravens and the occassional magpie. I feel embraced not only by the splendor of the trees all around me, but my Mother Nature herself! The trees soar upwards like needles topped with triangles of green pointed at the sun as if striving to reach the heights of heaven itself.
And I sit insignificantly here but knowing that I am just as much at home here as the trees!
The Above is one of the reasons I so miss being in India, as I have been 3 times in the past 5 years just at this time of the year
Ocotber 20th, 2005
The funniest thing happened yesterday. I was looking for something in my "travel drawer" and I came across my handwritten journal from last year's trip to India. Opened it to a page at random just for fun and came across this following entry, which, funny as it may seem, never made it to the computer last year, although it is one of the most beautiful days I remember, and for some reason just stayed in the handwritten notebook. Even funnier, it was written exactly one year to the day! On
October 20th, 2004! (My mother's birthday last year)
So I am sending it to myself for safe keeping and figured some of you might appreciate it, and, as always, feel free to delete if you are not in the mood.
As always...my love
Just walked up TIPA road to Dharamkot after not taking that orad in about 2 weeks. And it's as if I am walking someplace for the first time. Seems familiar but no place I've actually been this tripl No more whizzing sickshaws to jump aside from or taxi's r;ushing up blowing their horns. And only 2 other people were seen the whole way up. As a matter of fact, the only human sound accompanying me the whole way up was the occassional scrape of my hiking boots on the road or the soft rustling of my heans as my legs brushed against each other.
And so the forest came alive! At one place there was a tree standing alone with 18(!) ravens on it just enjoying thier perches in the sun and "chatting" quietly with each other. None of their usual shouting and squacking to disturb the peace of the day. It's as if the change has relaxed them as well. Further up a little hollow in the wood filled with layers of flitting butterlies. Also seeming to have been invited as well to enjoy the peace of the forest.
And the foliage has all become richer and greener and more luxuriant. The fronds on the ferns are enormous with brown stems running through their centers. Some as large as huge banana leaves. And the mosses have spread to cover enormous spaces that used to be just dark damp earth. One kind had little "leaves" in the shape of stars with miniscule white pointed "flowers" almost like sitting atop the "leaves". The cicadas no longer competing with the vehicles or human voices are heard in full force. And many different kinds of bird calls can be heard from the trees. The sun is gloriously warm and blessedly obscured from time to time by the shade of the forest. Making the walk the perfect combination of cold crispness and warmth.
As I approached Dharamkot, even the lilting voices of the school children seemed almost in aintrusion.
A few sparse lower branches seem connected by enormous spider webs.
One lone butterfly disappearing inside a clumpf of low lying rhodedendran.
A few lonely rays of suncshine manage to beam their way through the thickness of the 20-30 meter hi pines to rest on the forest floor which is a combination of pine needles, low greenergy, rocks and moss covered earth.
Surrounded completely on all sides by toal silence, except for the ever present cicadas and distant dcalll of ravens and the occassional magpie. I feel embraced not only by the splendor of the trees all around me, but my Mother Nature herself! The trees soar upwards like needles topped with triangles of green pointed at the sun as if striving to reach the heights of heaven itself.
And I sit insignificantly here but knowing that I am just as much at home here as the trees!
The Above is one of the reasons I so miss being in India, as I have been 3 times in the past 5 years just at this time of the year
posted by Jane @ 4:32 PM
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