What I have been doing since I got back from Green Gulch? On Thursday I did not go anywhere or do much of anything because I was pretty tired after my two weeks as a guest student. It was nice to just have time to reacclimatize.
On Friday I did some work then Emmy and I went to Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga. We brought a picnic lunch, sat on the great lawn then went for a hike around the forest where there were inspirational signs everywhere and amazing views around the South Bay. Later we checked out the art pieces scattered around the grounds. It’s an interesting combination of very classic sculptures of angels and maidens and then very, very modern art. Some reminded me of things you’d see in a children’s playground. There were some very cool plants growing in the cactus garden. It was wonderful to have time to catch up with Emmy. What wasn’t so wonderful was sitting in traffic on the way back. I had forgotten about Bay Area traffic since it had been a couple of months since I’d had to drive in it. Going from the South Bay to the East Bay on a late Friday afternoon was a painful experience. There were also a couple of accidents which slowed things down. But eventually, we made it back and I was very grateful that is not something I need to do on a regular basis.
Saturday entailed two trips to the library. For the first one I walked taking the steeper, more circular route which kept me away from the noisy traffic. It was a beautiful walk. I needed to pick up a few books and do some scanning, but had completely forgotten that the library was not open until noon on the weekends and I had arrived just before 10 AM. So I walked back home and got a few things done before hopping in the car. Decided to do my grocery shopping on the way as well. Mom and I have been catching up on Jeopardy the last few evenings and I’m still going to bed pretty early and waking up early.
On Sunday I hiked over to Green Gulch so I could attend zazen and the dharma talk. It took me about an hour and 45 minutes to get over there – what a fantastic way to enter Green Gulch! I saw several notes on my hike as the trail was pretty wet and muddy. I had brought hot water and oatmeal with me so I sat in the tea garden, my favorite spot, to have my breakfast. The dharma talk was about the importance of making space for awareness. Definitely a good reminder for me. I was already seeing how easy it was to slip back into my old habit of busyness instead of slowing down and taking time to consider what I wanted and didn’t want to do. It felt really good to be back in the Zendo. Afterwards I joined everyone for tea and muffins, this time as a participant which felt a little weird at first. I got to catch up with friends I made while I was there. Definitely has me motivated to continue going back at least for the Sunday dharma talks. There was blue sky when I left home in the morning, but it got foggier as I got closer to the coast, then alternated between sunny and foggy during my time at Green Gulch. Once I got back up to the Coyote Ridge Trail, it was very sunny and warm. I stripped off my layers and later found a lovely rock outcropping to sit on and have a snack. Halfway back I encountered a family of mountain bikers on the hiking trail which was very annoying. I told them I didn’t think the trail was for biking and directed them towards Coyote Ridge. They did not seem interested in doing that though. It’s so frustrating dealing with entitled people like that. But I worked on letting it go so I could enjoy the rest of my hike back home. My feet and legs were pretty sore at the end of the day after having put in a good amount of mileage and elevation gain over the last two days. Bed never felt so good!
