I could be nothing

It goes on forever along the shoreline

It never will end on the shores of my mind

I travel along 'til the sleep takes me in

Where have I ended, where do I begin?

Sand blankets are littered with stones whipped across

Dead things in the water, forgotten or lost

The branches have surfaced and now they are lean

The trees have washed up here

Stripped bare, and washed clean

The waves kiss and gently caress on the shore 

Kissing and winking , and calling for more

The waves like wagging tongues do adore

And whisper there softly to the sand on the shore

You would be nothing without me

I could be nothing

Said the waves to the sand 

I could be nothing without you

Each ones shifts and weakens a little 

Neither aware just how much they are brittle

Each one shifts and weakens a bit

Allowing the other to live and exist

O water and patience, pressure and time

Cuts through the faces of rocks we have climbed

The army of kisses, the lake never tires

The kisses that can put out all of my fires

You could be nothing without me 

I could be nothing 

Said the waves to the sand 

I could be nothing without you

Without you, I would be nothing

Without me, you could be nothing

Said the waves to the sand 

I could be nothing without you

- Great Lake Swimmers

Nothing is permanent. Cherish what you have.

My uncle Jim (my mom's oldest brother) wasn't afraid to say what he thought, whether he was giving his opinion or telling you how much he loved you. There's not much he didn't dab his fingers into in his life. As I grew older and moved around the world, I became more and more amazed of his progressive ideas and broad interests for a man who spent most of his life in North Dakota. He was more than just an uncle to my sisters and me. He cared about us like we were his own daughters. More than once, he and Audrey took our whole family into their home with open arms while we transitioning to our life without my dad.


Last December, Jim and Audrey were at Carrie's house while I was living with her before I moved to New Zealand. In the first pic, Jim was giving Audrey a hard time about mittens, then the cute couple. That night, we all sat around the dining room table with coffees and fresh krumkake, chatting and laughing late until it was way past bedtime.

Wherever you are now Uncle Jim, I love you and you are missed.

He graced this earth from 1936-2008.

Idea:

Look a stranger in the eye today
and realize there are no strangers.

English?

This morning, I got to clinic and one of my students asked, "Do you mind if I go to the munchie mart?"

I didn't mind.

He returned happy. "I got an up and go."

Ok. Whatever that is. Were we speaking the same language? I was starting to wonder.

Then another student, "I need a cotton bud."

I figured that must be a Q-tip. (It was.)

And that is all I have to say.

Two angels arrived yesterday at dawn

Yesterday, I had my first official visitors from Portland, Oregon arrive- Shanta and Brian.

They were treated to challenging weather, but were troopers as we walked through the streets of Auckland in more than a mist of rain, which never let up the ENTIRE day.

Our morning started out with a walk to my coffee shop then through the Domain park. They got to experience my commute to and from work. We wandered through K' Road, which is the part of Auckland where I love to hang out. It's full of hippies, tattoo parlors, second hand stores, vegan/organic cafes, prostitution shops, coffee, ethnic food... etc. I go there to feel at home. Or to feel like Portland. (They agreed.)

We followed the city park to downtown, in search of the art gallery. Being chilled to the bone, we stopped for hot wonton soup and a sandwich in the gallery cafe, all shared three ways before wandering through the art. The display theme was something about nature, but one room was filled with pictures of dead whales. :( Is that art? We couldn't look at it.

Though we're all hard-core Oregonians, we opted to ride the bus home. On the way back, we stopped in St. Stephen's Cathedral. Brian was a little uncertain whether he wanted to go into a church, but the architecture, stained glasses and Shanta's guided tour won him over. The little ladies were quite concerned that we were freezing to death. (We were.)

Once home, I broke down and asked my landlords for a space heater (remember, no central heating or insulation in NZ), which worked thankfully - though we were a little overzealous in the controls and ended up so hot that we contemplated opening a window.

After a stop at the grocery store, Shanta and I went to Evensong at the cathedral, which I thought was just choral singing, but it actually turned out to be an evening prayer service. (Oh well.) Brian stayed home and monitored the heater.

Later in the minikitchen, I whipped up a spinach salad and toast with feta and mushrooms for the three of us, which we washed down with wine. Those two kept offering to help, but I barely fit in my kitchen myself... let alone two of us! Or three! I could just see the headlines, "Three Americans found wedged in Auckland loft."

Shanta and Brian managed to stay up til 8:00PM before they crashed (Brian first, even with about 5 cups of coffee yesterday). We had our slumber party in my little space.

This morning we walked for coffee again before they headed off to pick up the campervan and loop the north island. Can't wait to hear back on their adventures!

So wonderful to have my good friends here... little angels from home they are!