Moving, slowly, Southward...

" 'Tis but a banging of the door behind you, a blithesome step forward, and you are out of the old life and into the new! Then some day, some day long hence, jog home here if you will, when the cup has been drained and the play has been played, and sit down by your quiet river with a store of goodly memories for company. "

~ Kenneth Grahame,
The Wind in the Willows



...I am peaceful. I have not felt so free or happy in a very long time. In the back of the head and the pit of the stomach, there is still the ever-constant flutter, reminding me that the excitement is not done yet; this is the quiet before the storm, if anything. But, sitting in my Mother's house, staring out the glass doors at the multitude of chaotic and will overgrowth that is the backyard, I am so much at peace, I cannot help but smile, continually.

I have felt this same sort of peace and safety on days when my father has invited me to his house to sit in the backyard or read a book, and breathe-- everything just sort of stops, and listens. A safe-haven from the rushing and seeming-dangers and urgency of everyday life. I am wondering, now, how much of it is the peace of my Mother's house, and the love and tender care of my Mother, and how much of this will become my new state of living: always the flutter of excitement and adventure, coupled with a relaxed peace...

But for now, we are just happy to see eachother and hug each otehr often, and take in the time with each other, and the beautiful, beautiful scenery...