back to the motherland

in international airports you may see life-sized cardboard chinese stewardesses standing a poised pose with beauty and grace in their essence. they make you want to smile and stand up straight even in their cardboardness. china airlines is a lot like a great restaurant menu - the pictures are perfect representations of what you will get. these beautiful chinese stewardesses topped their cardboard doubles. in addition to the asian princesses we got great meals, personal tvs and movies to choose from, AND a trip back to the homeland.

after a night back at the uncle steve guest house, an amazing welcome-home burger, and a trip to the renton library, we found ourselves at the next place any american would want to be after two months away: the greyhound bus station. lined up with what could have been a psych hospital field trip, we boarded -- seattle to des moines, 43 hours, 40 stops. not a great recipe for curing jet lag.

like any good greyhound experience, most of it was in a thin haze of fog. the most memorable moments were during the second night due to a driver who was "a piece of work" (adam's quote, 3 am). she woke us at 2 am for a truck stop breakfast with "awesome" food and coffee. her shrill voice with north dakota accent blasted thorough overly-amplified speakers throughout the bus. "alright, i'm only stoppin' for a few minutes. only enough time for a few drags on a cigarette." she was full of surprises - she waxed on to a captive audience about the story of the five tribes and the white buffalo. and, before her shift was up we gave ear to her plans: take a nice hot shower, sleep in her fluffy queen-sized featherbed, and have a drink. she'd be "thinking of us" as we continued in our plush greyhound accomodations.

what's the capital of thailand?

the quiet, steady rhythm of our bus ride through the night to bangkok was restful and serene. the abrupt stop, lights, and max volume thai pop at 4:45am, marking our arrival, was downright obnoxious. our whole busload was disoriented and delerious, standing on some unknown street in the rain, with a dozen tuk-tuk drivers negotiating "fair" prices to drive us to koh san road, a destination "too far to walk." fortunately, we latched onto a girl who knew the way, and walked the hardly 2 blocks to koh san, finally making our way out of the rain into the only business open at that dark hour - mcdonalds. we regrouped and planned our attack over an egg mcmuffin and bitter coffee. we had penetrated the beautiful chaos that is bangkok.

from our cheap cheap guesthouse, sweety's, we sprung into some of the colorful corners of the city. the weekend market was a dizzying maze of stalls and booths selling everything imaginable. its was a sensory cyclone. my brain was using so much energy trying to process the infinite trinkets, trifles, and t-shirts moving endlessly outward in every direction, that i kept forgetting to walk and would just stand there, circuitry sizzling. i nearly malfunctioned a few times. then tracy found some 10 cent popcicles that helped to numb the senses a bit.

we later connected with jon and kim quinley and a few of their kids at their house in bangkok. they are good friends with the haydn's, some friends from virginia, and have been working with microfinance a host of other community-developing projects in bkk and throughout southern thailand for about 8+ years now. we felt an instant connection with this interesting couple, and spent a long evening sharing stories, exchanging ideas, and giving props to God for all that He's doing in that place. jon and kim are a dynamic model of faith engaged in artful obedience. they are living, laughing pictures of God's grace. we were blessed by their generosity and clear vision.

we floated the rivers, walked the streets, shopped the alley markets, scarfed down dim som, smelled the whole spectrum of the city's olfactory options, denied tuk-tuk and custom-tailored suit offers, ate street cart food, haggled ad nauseum for all manner of gifts, watched some traditional thai dance while eating spicy cuttlefish, melted side by side in an upstairs room under the strong hands (and feet and elbows) of thai masseuses, and experienced the hair-cutting equivalent of a kung fu master performing his magic on tracy's hair. each event is a blog of its own; each a story, by necessity, reduced to a caption, to a phrase. such has been the inevitable fate of most of our adventures afoot: vibrant flowers smashed and squeezed and drained into essential oils - good-smelling but only a liquid fraction of the whole beautiful goodness of the event, flower. in a final phrase, bangkok was ultra-sensory, too big to experience in 3 days, and a place we hope to visit again someday, God willing.

what, phuket?

phuket was the last thing in our plans, but when we heard the word "waves" we reconsidered. then, when we found out our new friends were driving there at just the right time for us, we took this as confirmation that our wave-seeking was a righteous calling. we showed up, plopped at the first guesthouse that was cheap enough, and suited up with great confidence. after all, mark lanker would be utterly disappointed if we were to miss our chance to surf here. when we actually began to size up the waves we found ourselves munching at our knuckles so we walked along the beach until we found some flags that assured us we were less likely to die. we bartered for a 2-hour rental for some boards and hit the water. a half hour into it the clouds started rolling in... ahhh, NOW we see why it's called monsoon season. we weren't about to waste our 2 hours huddled under an umbrella. So, now we can say we "surfed" (or more accurately, repeatedly attempted to surf) through a monsoon. AND, the bodily damage was only minor.

steppin' ahead

By the end of our time in krabi and around, we were feeling ready to put our hands to something other than sunscreen and spring rolls, as good as all that is. we were fortunate to have the haydens, friends from VA, connect us with the quinleys. this couple, in conjunction w/ YWAM, started a program called "step ahead" in the wake of the tsunami. so, we headed that direction 4 hours north on 3 different buses and were dropped off at a random 7-11. We sweatily tromped around in our backpacks until we were offered directions from a motorbiking mama who stopped out of pity for us.

a little background: step ahead was created to help train locals english, computers, and general skills for the hospitality industry. the program also created 4 different preschools for displaced families in the area, providing them with an inexpensive opportunity so parents would be free to work. we were able to work and help with the preschool, the only hindrance being a screaming 2 year old on his first day there, deathly afraid of the "farang", adam. his goatee seems to either greatly interest or freak out the locals.

and, contrary to the belief that my in-home counselling days were left behind in hampton roads, i found myself (with colleague adam) doing just that. 2 different families w/ children in the preschool had just experienced traumatic deaths in the family (murder) and we presented, along with our proficient translator yee-wa, to provide brief support, grief counsel, and education. i spent some time with one of the most beautiful, vibrant 3-year-olds i've encountered (short hair, center in the above photo). after a bit of play therapy i couldn't know how how deeply she's been affected by the loss of her mother, but i sensed a strong resiliency in this brimming, singing, bright child of God. Lord, I do pray for her future!

Our last day there we were asked to talk with a woman employee who was in the midst of marital strife. we were so glad that we had an opportunity to use our "trade" to serve in this ministry!

krabi

we left koh tao under gray skies, bouncing arhythmically over nine foot swells for the first couple of hours. the inside of the boat had all the ingredients necessary for full-participation seasickness: the sweet, dizzying smell of diesel fuel from the engine; the seat-sliding heave and ho of riding swells; and the stomach-turning sights and sounds of passengers putting their clear plastic vomit bags to full and good use - fill 'em up, tie 'em off, and set them on the swaying floor so they can slide and slosh around. the stable boat dock was a welcome sight for our whole green boatload.
for the next two legs of our boat journey to krabi we sat cramped but happy on the outside deck with as many as could find space.
krabi was a city surprisingly short on farang (foreigners), but full to brimming of locals living at their normal, easy pace. one highlight of this area was an emerald colored, fresh water pool about seventy kilometers south of krabi, amidst remote farms and villages. we motorbiked there and hiked about three kilometers through the forest to the source of this crystal pool.
the forest was dense and tropical, with heavy air and a thick, green canopy high above the floor. the spring at the end of the trail was like something from the legend of zelda. in the middle of the brown, sludgy pool was a circle of turquoise water with white sand at the bottom about twenty feet in diameter and eight to ten feet deep. in the very center of the turquoise part the white sand bubbled up steadily, allowing the fresh water to flow into the pond from the spring beneath. it felt like a portal into another world. it brought to mind psalm 36:9, "for with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light." God's Spirit is a living spring, bringing energy and life to what would otherwise be stagnant and bitter; supplying a dead pool with a fresh flowing source; filling us to overflowing with life-giving, life-promoting substance. the Spirit of God is the well-spring of life. we marvelled at the wonder of this place, and at the spiritual reality of which this spring was a persuasive metaphor. we worshipped God, the God of wonders.
another of our preferred krabi features was the loud, bustling night markets, where we experimentally dined at every variety of cart, stall, and bucket available - every colored curry, fish, sprouts, noodles, suspicious meats on skewers, in bags, in leaves...spicy sauce with that? chai. a roy mahk! krabi kept us habby for a good few days.

commitment

travel is good. it opens ones eyes to truth displayed in different forms and gives an appreciation for new and old things both. it is non-committal - you can have a profound conversation or experience with someone you will never hear of again. you can pick up and leave when you get bored or uncomfortable. you can stay no longer than necessary in one place to remain unknown. there is a sense of freedom in this, and it is good in it's place.

flipside: this non-committal lifestyle makes our committal nature emerge to reveal our love of marriage - union based heartily on commitment, hardcore; our love of community - commitment to being a part of something larger than oneself and allowing that self to be known in one place, both consuming and producing; and a love of one God who remains good always, and committing to His goodness, period.

there is a sense of risk in this that surpasses any mountain trek, bungee jump, or romance fling. commitment, it turns out, is quite the adventure.

koh tao: singing praises

"Oh Lord, how many are your works! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your possessions. There is the sea, great and broad, in which are swarms without number, animals both small and great... I will sing to the Lord for as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being." Psalm 104:24-25, 33

It's hard for me to literally sing praise to God while 18 metres under aqua-glowing seas - but the innumerable creatures that inhabit these parts have no problem with it. Sapphire-jeweled sea urchins, perfectly-painted fish of mind blowing variety in saturated color, and creamy-purple coral were just a few members of the choir. Scuba diving has been the best apologetics course I've had.

After floating through canyons that above sea would produce a surge of fear/adrenaline, I slowly and weightlessly floated up towards the sun. Images of the Grand Canyon, powerful Yosemite waterfalls, and dozens of flowers we've stopped to smell in these past months come to my mind -- my mind was already overwhelmed with the abundance in just the state of California -- now this?! "Oh Lord, how varied are your works!!" privileged, we are, to experience God through so many of His works of absolute wonder.

laos, part deux

first, they loaded as many bags of rice as could be squeezed between and on top of the passengers' baggage, beneath the bus. then, they packed at least two-thousand brown eggs in open black crates (no doubt the collective product of luang probang's entire gaggle - or is it cackle?- of chickens) onto the top of the public bus. lastly, they managed to heave a 250cc honda dirtbike onto the roof, next to the eggs. the inside of the bus was comparatively empty. tracy and i each spread out onto two seats, riding comfortable the six-plus hours over the mountains and through the hills to vang vieng. our en-route entertainment was a loud rivalry of volume between the lao pop playing on the bus overhead speakers and the slightly different lao pop playing through the phone of a local teenager. i am convinced that she was selectively deaf to the first and considered her own music a contribution to the local mood. grace was sufficient.
vang vieng was a strange specimen. the exterior of the town was unsurprisingly laotian, with food markets, lush rice paddies, and children splashing happily in irrigation ditches. the interior of the town, on the other hand, ran next to an abandoned, overgrown airstrip laid and left by american forces during the secret war against the lao communist party in the sixties, and consisted of dozens of restaurants serving western food, each of which were (randomly) showing episodes of "friends" from every different season, no doubt in the hope that westerners would feel attracted to the familiar characters and theme song. they were right. in every "friends-featuring" restaurant 3 to 12 sunburned westerners sat eating pizza and self-treating their varying levels of homesickness and longing for familiarity.
tracy and i laughed and shook our heads at this spectacle; at the pathetic-ness of all these people travelling so far only to spend their time on what can be lazily enjoyed at home. then we stopped in, ordered some greasy fare, and watched an episode. it was delightful.
we made a valiant effort to volunteer at an organic farm on the outskirts of town. tracy helped to teach some local village children the wonders and ecstasies of microsoft word, we both helped to fill the troughs with greens for their milking goats, and to rope in customers to their poorly located food and drink stand "for a good cause". but in the end, the farm was a bit of a disappointment, in its almost complete lack of coordination and organization. the idea of it is good, despite the reality of it.
we biked the rutted roads connecting vang vieng to its small neighboring villages, swam in a small, brilliant blue lagoon until a monsoon swept in, and finally bid adieu to the city by floating down the brown waters of its arteriole(?) river, the namsong.
vientiane, the capital city, was our last, brief stop in the...the...mmm...laos is a hard country to describe with one or two adjectives. up and coming? maybe not. joyful and free? no. uncertainly independent? perhaps. though, this is hardly the way to characterize a country at which we've only just glanced. judgment is sometimes best in suspension. the place, by and large, felt a bit ominous to us.
we did, however, have a stellar italian dinner in the capital - ravioli, lasagna, and a long-craved-for cheese platter (there was nothing dark about this meal).
before we opened the door to leave laos, we visited the national museum, where we learned about the heinous, gruesome imperialism of everything western, and about the impeccable and virtuous heroism of every comrade in the history of the lao communist party. we sneaked out the fire escape of that place, and then crawled out of the country. thai visas renewed, we balled our way, again, through the night, back into the land of thai. it felt like a home-away-from-home coming. bangkok, chumphon, kno tao...ahh, kno tao.

oh yeah. our camera is, no more. we'll have to amp up the organic memory. God is still with us, we are certain.

Laos part 1

i think i use my watch as much for the DATE as for the TIME. in this case, it was about visa expiration and our trip into laos was due. packed like sardines in a 'minibus' we ventured out from our latest hometown of pai. 9pm - 4am on the windy roads brought us to the border along with several other confused travelers, "what is a good price?' "where do we get the boat?" what is UP with the exchange rate?" (8700 kip for $1). the plan for us (despite my hesitance) was the 2 day "slow boat" down the mekong river to luang probang. we were delighted to agree with our new formed motley group of travellers that we had gotten the best seats in the house - atop bags of rice in the front of the boat atop a platform where we could sprawl out, hang out, share stories and play games. we consisted of Nadine - australian seasoned vagabonder\Continent jumper and like-minded discoverer; nate - L.A. college funny-man, a novice traveler with great responses and easy laugh; jean baptiste (J.B.) - french policeman concentrating hard to keep up with our fast english but up for any adventure, a natural athlete; brad and mirium - aussie couple with fun and interesting travel stories including a week of bonding with elephants; and pablo - quick-witted argentinian with a way of saying things ('don't say my name, i want to forget who i am right now," he says after getting a bum-deal in the village of pak beng), on a journey to find airplane crash remnants in northern laos and vietnam. we bonded for a few days in luang probang, then scattered. different combos of us joined and rejoined throughout our 3 days there. together we experienced a magical turquoise waterfall, mobs of soliciting tuk-tuk drivers, good food (delicious "mekong weed"), pick up soccer with hard-playing lao kids, surreal bowling, and new friendship.

pai in the sky

we've been savoring a humble slice of pai for the past 4 or 5 days, launching from our modest, riverside bamboongalow into the surrounding mountains and villages, creating and discovering adventure. "pai is what chiang mai was ten years ago," is the refrain repeatedly sung by the growing chorus of tourists we meet. it feels pretty local here. we know a few of the neighborhood shopkeepers by name, and continue to accidentally make friends with others afoot. it's hard not to start feeling like old friends when we keep turning up in the same places as these other travellers, and keep sharing the same experiences with them. it only takes a few days in a place like this to start experiencing community. some friendships are destined, however brief.
unlike chiang mai, we can walk the streets of the whole city before breakfast, if we want to. we don't want to, though. we prefer motorbikes - for only $2.50 a day! we've buzzed giddily around to sink our heads into all of the local wonders: great, foggy waterfalls with slick, smooth rock slides that drain into deep pools; a sprawling canyon with trails winding in every direction, and with a dazzling sunset view; expansive, terraced, water-filled rice paddies with bright green strands beginning to emerge; deep, cathedral-like caves with dark rivers bubbling through them, thousands of swallows swirling at their mouths, and centuries-old coffins tucked eerily into dark corners. we could almost hear the distant sounds of dwarves singing and of their hammers ringing in the deep - "we must awake ere break of day to reach the pale, enchanted gold..." i'm pretty certain gollum tried to pinch my wallet, my precious wallet, while we were floating on our bamboo raft through the darkness. it was otherworldly. it was middle-earthly.

we're now preparing to pull up the shallow roots we have sunk down into pai, and travel through the night, like refugees, to the border of laos, where computing the exchange rate will require greater math skills than we've had to employ for some time. we are still growing.

new vision

we met someone who knew someone who believed strongly in the value of the good work being done by someone in a small village in northern thailand. each connection, we are certain, was ordained in another sphere. brother lek is the kind-hearted, english-speaking son of the someone last mentioned: pastor chet sirikiatkit, a joyfully hard-working servant of God, who shepherds a small church in baan khai with the tireless support of his kind wife. we travelled with lek and his fiance, jum, up to baan khai, where we were immersed in the grace of his parent's hospitality.
they quickly and affectionately adopted us as their own children, insisting that we call them ohpa and oha, their laho tribes' names for dad and mom. we were glad to do so, for even despite the language barrier, we felt very much at home with them. lek and jum were exceptional translators, to our benefit and delight.

oha spared no energy or expense in preparing superb laho and thai dishes for us, serving us their own home-grown black chicken, bamboo, sugar cane, rice, and a variety of herbs and spices, along with a host of delicious local specialties. the laho words we spoke most frequently all related to the preparation, consumption, enjoyment, and completion of meals - "meh ja. bv uh ja!" we spent a lot of time laughing, eating, talking, gesturing, and praying together. did i mention laughing? yeah...much laughing.
we were also introduced to the great work they are doing - the great burden they have - for the poor and orphaned children of the region. drugs, alcohol, HIV, and a variety of other things have broken families apart, leaving many children destitute and without hope. lek's parents are earnestly, generously sharing what little resources they have to begin to meet this need. they have taken a great and courageous stride of faith in starting this orphanage, and have a broad vision for it to be a self-sustaining entity at some point in the future.
they were very hesitant to share the needs of this place with us, not wanting to "put a burden on your shoulders," but tracy and i were overwhelmed with the appropriateness and goodness of this pursuit, and feel compelled and eager to come up under this burden with them; to share it with them. there are countless needs and opportunities for service and partnership in mission around the world, but we are particularly moved by the personal goals and sacrifices made by these servants, and feel strongly led to contribute our resources to their work. we are committed, in prayer and in material resource, to this partnership. we also joyfully invite all who feel similarly led to join us in this. ohpa and oha extend their generous welcome to you as well!
"dachimahe - you are welcome!"

more chiang mai

for the last week or so we've been getting ourselves acquainted with thai culture in chiang mai and around. one thing this means is local (street) food for which we've had to learn the phrase "what the heck do you call this?" deliciously questionable things wrapped in banana leaves and roasted for 10 baht - can't beat it! to quickly summarize what we've been up to:
-- walking, sampling, walking, sampling, walking... diarrhea medication.
-- bartering and laughing
-- trekking into n. thailand hill tribes, swimming in waterfalls along the way, sleeping in bamboo huts, and playing the dice game "farkle" with our thai tour guides, neung and singha, who absolutely LOVED it (thanks to grandma and grandpa R.!).
-- squatty potties and mastering the sprayer method.
--showering more in one day that we did in any given week during our travels in the U.S.
--clambering through a jungle on a steep muddy trail -- atop an elephant.
--late night talks with our brit and frenchman fellow travellers, tom and kevin.
-- zipping around on a moped on streets filled with whole families on motorbikes, and where stoplights and roadlines are optional.... on the superhighway... in a monsoon.

**this is where we thank the moms for their prayers.

--visiting cornerstone christian counseling center and gathering food for thought regarding mental health in missions. helping their on-site maintenance/security guard, thop, paint his living quarters, which was in great need.
--celebrating the mark of the beginning of the 28th year of ADAM we wish we could have had you all here to eat his favorite Mediterranean cuisine and mosey about the night bazaar.

for now, we are off to near chiang rai to help with an orphanage that is just getting off the ground. we think of so many of our friends and family here and are growing fonder as we are absent from you!

chiang mai

there were violent protests going on in the streets of bangkok, when we arrived. undoubtedly, we both would have been brutally trampled under the feet of the ten thousand-plus-person throng, if it weren't for the casual, smiling guidance of a few interested locals, who pointed us in the right direction. we ended up meeting jack, a thai government employee who grew up in texas, loves americans, and apparently speaks six different languages, all of which kept trying to sneak into his conversation with us. he helped us come up with a reasonable itinerary for our first week in thailand. "first thing: get out of bangkok." his service was free, because he works for the national tourism authority. we figured, since he was an authority on tourism, we should probably take his advice. we ended up chattering our way up to chiang mai on a hissing, jarring relic of railroad history, where we could see the tracks racing by through the hole in the bottom of the toilet (not many people walk along the tracks, we figured), and where the roomy baggage compartment, surprisingly, turned out to be my bedroom for the night. we are now bunking in a cozy, if warm, bedroom in the heart (perhaps the throat) of the old city of chiang mai. our days consist of walking, turning down tuk-tuk drivers, memorizing as many small thai phrases as we can, resisting high-pressure textile salesmen from kashmir (they're very lovable), slurping down local cuisinary mysteries, and trying to hear the voice of God in this place. it is a beginning. we are definitely foreigners.

seattle

the great people in the great city of seattle...
steve: the perfect kind of uncle to have: laid back, interesting and interested, laughs a lot, plush guest room, takes off of work for you in a snap, knows the best hikes to do in the fog or not, enjoys good beer, and beautifully a gratton -- one of my own. thanks steve for the great times and amazing flexiblity with putting up with 2 stinky fareweather family members.

tia and tim: my longest time still oober-close friend and kindered spirit and her well suited kind, generous, up-for-anything beau. we lindy hopped even though we didn't know how, folk-festivaled it up with sensory overload, barbequed creatively, hiked in the gorgeous cascades, and deeply enjoyed our time with them. we are thinking about proposing switching the state of washington with the state of maryland. we have loved tia and now love tim as well -- and to top it all off, they are both seasoned travellers who have both spent time in thailand. how is that for a send off?

gorge. us.

sometimes, in the wilderness, i'll turn over a rock and discover a whole family of unusual creatures dwelling peacefully together, contributing in some unexpected but vital way to the overall harmony and health of their local environment. in the urban wilderness of portland, we discovered the rodgers. ricky, anna, and their kids selah, moriah, havilah, graylan, and gideon are an unusual species of family. they are sinking roots down into the soil of southeast portland, and already producing fruits of charity and kindness for the refreshment of those within reach of their tree (and the great, asymmetric house being built upon it).
although they'd only known us for about thirty minutes, ricky and anna gladly offered us their love, inviting us to abide at their delightful abode, and to share in the joyful noise of their large family.
we drove with ricky, the kids, and neighbor jake in the vintage chevy greenbriar to elowah falls, where they all helped us set up camp for the night. the falls are in the columbia river gorge (the name europeans, we discovered, prefer over 'canyon'). the gorge is an enchanted place, full of wonder and the possibility of magic.
after elowah, we hitched to hood river, stayed there for two days, catching our breath and remembering what we're doing, and then went back into the wilderness of the gorge. at ricky's suggestion, we hiked seven miles up eagle creek, where everything is soft, green and pulsing with life, and where water falls thrash and explode on and on along the trail. it was one of our best hikes yet.
we hitched back to p-land, spent the evening with ricky, anna and the kids, and are now off to seattle.
some families are not unexceptional. the rodgers, mmm, are one of those families.

sold!

i am proud to offically announce being truly homeless. although we have been living that way for the past 5 weeks, we have had a delightful condo laying in wait in VA Beach. today she closed; we traded her in for a briefcase of cash.

SO, now we sleep in the sand on a shady bank in the middle of the hood river. bags stashed in a nearby bushy tree during daylight - the general area is where we refer to for now as "home."

or when we get romantic and quote the movie "the notebook" we just refer to "eachother" as our home (and if this is the case, our home needs a GOOD cleaning up).

We thank the Good Lord for allowing this sale to happen and launching us forward into the next thing -- whatever it may be. the fact that the offer came in the DAY we left just blew our minds. We were so blessed to have had such a great place for the past 4 years, and blessed today for profiting from having invested there. we thank His saint, kris weaver, as well. a real estate agent that goes beyond the call of duty, who worked everything out so smoothly and did all the footwork (and gobs of paper-signing)along with his team as we've been galavanting around the west. Thank you kris!
www.krisweaver.com

p-land

portland is a city that values artistic expression. it is a fun city to look at, and to experience with the other four senses as well. image is esteemed highly here, and appearance. things seem to be evaluated quickly here in terms of their immediate surface characteristics. i wonder what the image of God might look like here. we visited imago dei, a christian community in the hawthorne district, and the physical image of that community looked similar to the local environment. the spirit of jesus was strong there, however, and the character and nature of God was far more striking than any physical attributes of the church. they seem to know how to use the medium of this place to convey the truth without allowing the medium itself to be the end. art is a means to the end of highlighting the great beauty of our creator, whose beauty, while manifest physically, is far deeper and more enduring.

homeless

homeless in lincoln city, OR.

lost coast

san francisco

jamie and the lost coast

we eased our way up the coast to the green hills of humboldt county, where we enjoyed some fine living on the sachs family farm, with jamie. he abides in rustic serenity up there with his peaceful dog, shasta, growing various fruits, veggies, herbs, and spices, and living as close as possible to nature without having to give up the satisfying accoutrements of modern life: internet access and netflix.
between the two nights we stayed at jamie's cabin, the three of us and shasta headed out to the lost coast for a three day wilderness excursion. the trek was 25 miles and change along the coast, and consisted of transitions between every type of terrain - soft, black sand, fist-sized stones, hard, breakwater sand, head-sized rocks, boulders, piles of driftwood, grass, stream bed, and every possible combination of these elements.
it is land owned and managed, though loosely, by the bureau of land management, and except for a few priveleged structures, undoubtedly the envy of most through hikers, it is a land entirely free from human development.
with some sections impassable at high tide, and with the whole coast subject to the often unpleasant, sometimes violent elements of the mountainous coastline, the lost coast is one of the ruggedest areas we've ever hiked. we found shelter patches both nights to avoid the potentially raucous winds, and made raging driftwood fires (rip-roarin', seth and pa) to dry our gear (tracy had a bit of a sock casualty).
the coast was wild and totally untamed. wildflowers burst in meadows and waves smashed against huge jutting boulders. sea lions barked and sunned on large rock outcroppings, and grey whales (or were they blue?) arched their slick backs out of the water just over 100 yards out from the shore, emptying their blowholes into mist. wind was strong, skies were blue, and fresh water streams were, well, really fresh.
we found the lost coast. then we left it there. it was too big to bring along with us.

good people

adam and I were privileged to spend 5 days at the 'mystic mountain resort' (also known as 'aunt laurie and joe's') in sonoma county. laurie lavished us with bunches of stellar (and vegan!) fare and we had time to take in the area -- including canoing with joe on the russian river and a visit to the beach. we also joined laurie for a sing-along where she proceeded to rock the piano for some local oldsters. we soon realized we needed to get out of there before we got too used to all the good treatment -- it was time to start the next chapter of our journey up the coast... officially AFOOT.

Our first ride could not have been more ideal. we were quickly friends with dave, a red-faced, easy-laughing retired wanderer living out of a utility van equipped for long term traveling: bed, curtains, porta potty, stocked coolers, and an open spirit to folks afoot. we rode along the windy ocean-view highway and laughed and shared stories. this ride and two days with dave is enough material for a short story. but, for the sake of time, all i'll say is that we showed up unannounced to his "ex-nephew's" place, pitched our tent in the back yard, and joined the locals.

A few other hitching highlights so far have been some white-knuckle rides in beds of screeching-tire pick-up trucks shared with large but friendly dogs. Another was just yesterday with folks we met at cape lookout -- cheryl, martin, jesse, and eli. they were on a trip moving to washington, we chatted and clicked but went on our way... the next day they were driving out of town and saw our thumbs so lifted us to tillamook where we explored the cheese factory together. we enjoyed the inquisitive youths peering through the factory glass, the parents' explanation to our impressed observation of the boys was "no TV."

SO many characters, so many interactions that leave me smiling. I think having on a bandanna and backpack brings us into brotherhood with a different crowd. even thought we don't have to be homeless, don't have to be eating everything out of tin cups, we choose to -- and it allows us the privilege of connecting with an array of good people.

green tortoise

the green tortoise is a well-connected roadhouse for travellers international and national alike. it is a noisy, jostling hive of people on the move, tucked securely - or so it promises - in the pulsing heart of san francisco's red light district. amidst the red, seductive neon of broadway is the green glow of the friendly tortoise hostel, an urban oasis. we stayed there for an entirely too brief three nights, sharing our suspiciously odorous double bunk-bed dorm room with a different variation of folks each night. the tortoise is well-woven into the fabric of the city. it seems to know where every different thread leads, as well as which particular threads to follow to indulge any given whim or fancy. our whims and fancies led us to an assortment of piers, parks, enterprising holes in walls, reefer smokers and sellers, gardens, bridges, and homeless havens. we ate monster burritos in record time, jammed hard to classic 80's music with bright-faced strangers, and wandered far and wide, on foot, throughout the city. we shared laughs, meals, and stories with people from ireland, england, albania, norway, finland, puerto rico, and even alabama. that's right, alabama. it was a delightful junction of worlds.

so much

just a quick blurb to say we are well - we now find ourselves in yahats, oregan staying in an apartment above the yahats river house restaurant with the owners, who we got a ride with from california. life is good!

yosemite

snowden folk

there is a family that pours out grace like a fountain, overflowing with it. time is not spent with the snowdens, it is earned. we gained a few good moons with three generations of this vibrant family - three with luke, amy, emma, and adam and their colorful housemates, dallas and stormie; and two with jim and lynn, whose house has always been a refreshing roadhouse for unlikely and often uninvited passersby.

luke and amy do parenting as they do hospitality: easily and with simple generosity. they are kind and gentle with emma and adam, even in their distribution of consequences, and have a much-laughing appreciation of their developing curiosity and response to life. they are a family of deep, various conversation, and of frequent laughter. they are a family living on purpose.

jim and lynn, likewise, have their eyes wide open as they live. they are a couple dedicated to generosity, of any variety of resource, of spirit, and of the gifts of the spirit. theirs is a christianity committed to the activity of love, and the community of those blessed by them continues to grow. we are inspired by both generations of snowden to understand and imitate the lifestyle of jesus, to be generous, to be joyful.

death to life

"for the anxious longing of creation waites eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God... even we ourselves groan within ourselves , waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body." rom. 8:9,23.

the dramatic drive through the seirra nevadas and south around the western divide was like death to life. death valley, fantastic and beautiful but also frightening, brought us to the lowest point in the western hemisphere - to a salty crunchy floor with puddles of "badwater"

application of chapstick = once every quarter of an hour.

My sould seemed to cry out for something... water? life? hospitality? we camped part way through the park under a huge sky (mark - adam and i saw a "did you see THAT?" shooting star). this place was truly the beauty of desloation...

the next day we drove down around the western divide and up through the national forest that became greener and greener at every turn of the winding mountain road. cows and hourses in pasture, lush fields of rolling mountains... water, flowing freely, and sun and shade both - it was like the promised land. the smell of the orange tree orchards was like sweet jasmine tea. this was a crossing over into new life -- a thirst quenching taste of living water.

clearly seen

having pulled ourselves with aching calves out of the huge crack, where we had a bit of an expensive encounter with r.j., the skinny ranger on the last 2 mile stretch, we started walking back towards the canyon village, eventually getting picked up by the buckles, a couple of carefree, retired wisconsinites. they gave us a nice loaf of stale bread.
we realized that our urban existence has left us unconscious of some of the intimidating and inhuman attributes of our great God, during this drop into the crack. our understanding of God has been shaped by a new analogy, here. we are aware of the immensity of God, and of His inapproachableness. he is too great to reduce to a map, a documentary, or a tour, let alone a postcard or an engraved spoon. he rests in places we are not even able to see, and to which we are definitely not able to climb. we see the terrible and frightening aspects of his nature. we are terrified by what we see here. our breath is taken from us, and our only response is speaty palms and a dry mouth. God is the designer of this, both directly and indirectly. every attribute of this place is but a dim reflection of the same attribute to an infinite degree within his supreme nature. he is immense. he is infinitely layered. he is frightening in his beauty and in his potential to be dangerous. he is higher than we can ever reach and lower than we can find a way to descend. he is complex in detail. he is wild, but always orderly. he is vast beyond human observation or habitation. he might be around any bend or on the top of any stone tower. i am afraid of him, and don't know how to go about finding him.
i am glad i have a guide. i am glad my guide knows the path...is the path.

grapevine creek, grand canyon

alive, well.

The mothers will be glad to know that the canyon did not defeat us. No snakes or scorpions, merely friendly frogs, lizards, and funky beetles. It was an awe inspiring experience that has wet our appetites for more of the west. So, we continue on through death valley after a refreshing visit with the snowdens and a decadent trip to the 'delights hot springs resort' (and RV park ---).

opportunity of crisis

we sometimes allow the pressure of time rather than the love of some end to motivate us forward into action we also sometimes stay wrapped in ourselves so tightly that we miss the opportunity for new connections with others. we realized this yesterday.
it was a few past a few minutes past 11am. our ride was coming at 12 to bring us to the airport. we had a shortening list of things to do and an even more shortening amount of time to do them in. only a few loose ends lay untied on the fabric we were about to leave on the east coast.
as we ran up the stairs to get the last few remaining things out of our pad, i flipped through the keys on my ring and realized, perhaps in different words, "mmm. the house key is not on here." "where did you put it?" "i must have put it on the other ring, in your purse." "is the sliding door open on the balcony?" "i don't think so." "i'll climb up and see. you check the trunk of the car for another spare." "the sliding door is locked." "there's no spare in the trunk." blast. curse. spit.
for the past week or so we'd been seeing a guy with his sprawling family come pouring out of their family van like a circus act, and had been saying to ourselves, "that dude's gotta be a christian. we should talk to him." but, alas, we hadn't taken the initiative.
as we stood fretting outside of our pad on this day, this man was loading up his van with the help of his many children. we had no key, no phone, and no one around with a spare to get in our place...and the clock was ticking. we were compelled to ask this guy if we could use his phone to call our realtor and ask for a miracle. tracy asked...and called. no answer. the guy, kevin, suggested we try using a credit card to get in.
as i tried the card, tracy talked to kevin and his kids. as it turns out, kevin works with wycliffe and is a bible translator. he's been up here with his family visiting some friends. he works with an organization called jaars in north carolina, and recommends that we go check out their facility to see if we'd like to work there.
i'm often hesitant to say that events are the result of direct divine intervention. i am often weak in faith, perhaps. i can't help but wonder, though, if we were supposed to meet kevin, and since we hadn't taken the initiative, God had to orchestrate the occasion.
we ended up getting in with the card trick. loose ends were tied up and stored. we and our flights were on time and ultimately untroubled.
lesson one: we want to make things happen instead of waiting for them to happen. we want to take initiative with others in our life, seeing good opportunities and entering into them. we also want to be motivated by love, rather than by fear--which is what "the pressure of time," or procrastination, is all about.

introducing

introducing: an attempt at recording musings inspired by our spring/summer '08.

5 years ago we married, it was beautiful. we dreamt of reckless adventures and a life not too crammed full of responsibility. then we went to school and bought a house and made virginia our home, things that may not have appeared too exotic but have been exactly right for us. with me now graduated and adam close behind, the time has come to step out into 'other' unknown. for us, now, this looks like traveling, vagabonding a bit, 4 months of being afoot between the western u.s. and eastern asia. our desire is that we open ourselves to the beauty and truth that we encounter, and that God continues to change our lives.