Happy Birthday Miss

I am so glad to celebrate this your special birthday.
Last year we faced the possibility that every major life event might be the final.
Oh the agony and release of the terminal.
The last view of the Pacific Ocean waves crashing on the beach.
Reluctant goodbyes to the horizon we could not abandon.
Salty taste, heavy tired feet wrestling with glittering sticky sands that refuse to let us go.
Echo of the last seagull flying above us melts into Indrayani’s mystical flute.
Fine raindrops hide the story the faces tell.
Goodbye to mysterious critters that leave their ephemeral markings in the sand forever.
Thank you for a year of heightened focus,

Acute noticing of a sliding droplet on a green leaf.
Infinite color shades of flowers.
Rays of sunrise filtering through pine branches, fir trees and window blinds in winter.
The unspeakable message of silent eyes
Transport us beyond time,
Briefly.
Beyond pain, fear and death—briefly,
Across the portal to eternity
Where all is well.
Another stunning sun rise in spring quickens the heart
Other visits to the ocean
To fly kites, see horse riders and seagulls in the summer.
In the fall, dragon flies welcome us beside memorial trees at the Sanctuary.


And so another birthday filled with love
Ang joy and gratitude
Is here:

Of yours….
And Sarah’s
And Arya’s and their children’s children
Fuse into one endless birthday of the four seasons.
Happy birthday, Miss.