and life is very good . . . .

it began as a day like no other; the birth of a new day, perhaps like my birth 55 years ago, although i suspect my mom wouldn't feel that way!

and so i begin this reflection on the day before; i suspect when the labor began, but i cannot guarantee that information at the moment, was only a memory when the labor pains ceased.

and so last night i took my time to return home by way of west cliff; just beyond swift, where i usually stop to watch, to read, and to walk.  ironically, the parking spaces were full, as the whales (and their watchers) were out in abundance.

as sunset began, the moon shone as a glimmer on the ocean; the reflection of light and life; the beginning and the ending can be seen in this moment of the day . . . .

and so, as you move clockwise on that shoreline, you come to another part of the sky, between the rising moon and the setting sun . . . .

in-between those two lights, the sky is filled with birds . . . not to be confused with 'for the birds', but the unmistakable movement of various bird clusters as they come and go and return.

of course, the most active flight of the birds is the pelican, in constant search of food; the reward of that unrelenting search.  but these birds in flight to your left are not pelicans, but remain in formation; they move to and fro over the waters between the greater and the lesser light.

unlike our perception that the pacific always points us west, you will note that the rising of the moon and the setting of the sun in the next picture leaves santa cruz facing north/south, not east/west.
and so we turn our sights closer to this day; the setting sun.
 

the wave forms, giving this part of the cliff much more interesting views.  imagine living on the cliff where you could see the rising and the setting of life every day.  the sound of the birds as they communicate to one another.  the ebb and the flow of the water; the sound of the crash against the shore; the renewing of each moment with the freshness of that new moment, filled with possibilities.

when i awoke this morning and walked and readied myself for this celebration of 55 years, i had no idea that my anticipation of the day ahead would be overtaken by the breaking of my car door-locks; over and over again as i tried to enter my car, the alarm would sound and the door locks malfunction.  when aaa arrived some three hours later, last night's sunset was a memory, and my focus became how to attend to my day, now so muddled.

each moment begins with a new possibility of light!  after a time of labor, my 56th year begins, and my experience began with a gift -- the virtues of being in a small group remind me i was prepared for even before i got started this morning; someone shared about the light of this 'birth'day with my group; and so my group at 'the abbey' became a new kind of light for me:  a cupcake from 'the buttery', with a card which read, "you're not really old till you pick up the remote control  . . . hold it to your ear and wait for a dial tone."

and so it goes . . . my car is in the shop; i am at home attending to my day, i have been wished well by many people far and wide; the light is bright overhead; i am grateful to be here, and life -- with all it's complications -- is very good.