It’s disorienting, only 24 hours later to be in a completely different world. And when it’s that different to not think of it as a detour from your real life. Nope, this is it. This is life now. I’m in the Midland/Odessa area of west Texas. The babies have been tucked in and the family is around the table, all seven of them. They’ve got the beer, they’ve got the chips, the cards are out and the competition is high – it’s Texas Hold’Em. Each guy believes he’s gonna’ win, but my bets are on Ruby or Eliza. I’m used to living alone, and I have to adjust to the group thing. There are a lot of us. But I’m content to overhear them, be in the next room, or do a walk through. I’m just happy we’re all together. But we’re always missing one. This time Sarah’s in Montreal. I look at it as a wabi sabi kind of thing. A reminder of the perfection of imperfection, both sides of the coin. You can’t know joy without the pain. Or Leonard! “There is a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.”
Travelling in a group of seven was fun. We have grown up. No one said, “Are we there yet?” Vancouver, San Francisco, Dallas to Midland, what a milk run, 14 hours! Jonah made me laugh so hard on the plane I felt hysterical. At one of our connections there was a delay, and when we finally got on the plane, the few minutes more got longer and longer. The pilot came on the intercom to reassure us that we were only waiting for a maintenance form to be signed, nothing serious. When the plane finally started moving we were going backwards down the runway and Jonah sort of yelped, “We’re going the wrong way!” I love ridiculous humour. Okay, one more – I was holding some orange peels in my hands, you’re stuck in an airplane seat, where do you put them? Jonah leaned over and said, “Ask them if they compost.” I thought I was gonna’ die.
Haven’t really gone out yet, just in the yard which is awesome with a pool. The temperature is mid-eighties, a balmy breeze. This is not a house, it looks like a villa. There are so many rooms and areas off rooms that it is absorbing all ten of us. But tomorrow I have to get out and claim the neighbourhood. I will be here until November and the only way to know a place is to walk it.
So this family thing will be lasting for a week, shorter for Jonah. He’s got gigs in Vancouver next weekend so his flight leaves on Thursday. James was really concerned about how to entertain us and thought he should have a lineup of things to do every day and show us Texas. He doesn’t know us well, but this family is low maintenance, the daunting part is our number. We are quite satisfied eating, drinking, sleeping, getting wet, and poking at each other. But there are a few things on the agenda. It wouldn’t be Texas without some shooting. All those who want to are going out for target practice. I thought that meant at a range but James is taking them out in the desert. Duh, I’ll skip it. I prefer to use my mouth. And I’m going to be a terrifically good sport and stay with the babies while all the siblings and their partners go out to a real Texas bar for drinking and dancing. I am so jealous but I’ll do it. My turn will come. And Ruby can finally have a birthday with her family present. We miss her so much. So… one party, one shootarama, and the Canadians kicking butt at The Ranch…..
What I need after the family returns home, is to figure out what’s here. I know I need a library, I need some green space, a diner, and something authentic. I want to find the old parts of this town that have to exist somewhere besides what I see – the malls, the fast food outlets, the homogenization.
Thanks for checking in. I’m going to end this with something of Osho’s that struck me. We were on the last leg of our journey on a small plane from Dallas to Midland, which is 500 miles further west. Stepping into the aircraft you can’t help but notice the size of the nuts and bolts through the metal that are holding the plane together. This heavy, man-made contraption with an engine, with seats and human beings sitting in them (and it’s carpeted, too!), is going to go up there through the clouds and hang there and even move forward. Is that not surreal? And everyone is reading People magazine while hurtling through the sky. Does a lighter read…help? I need something more substantial. It was Osho’s book on Courage and I’ll leave you with this…..
You cannot be truthful if you are not courageous
You cannot be loving if you are not courageous
You cannot be trusting if you are not courageous
You cannot inquire into reality if you are not courageous
Hence courage comes first and everything else follows
Good Life
diane