Home again, safe and sound

Sandi and Deb on our last Vashon morning

Every single day of our retreat, the three of us left the farmhouse just before sunrise to walk three miles around a loop we discovered a few years back. It was the perfect way to start the day before spending so many hours sitting and writing, reading and sharing, and listening to each other's positive feedback about our writing.

And now it's over. Our sixth and final Vashon Island gathering of the bloggers who have called ourselves "Vashonistas" has come to an end. What lies ahead isn't clear, but I truly hope that I will see the magical island of Vashon again someday. I only know it in October, and this year the weather was more than perfect. We got many glimpses of Rainier, and on our last night, we were treated to the mountain in alpenglow.

Rainier and Quartermaster Harbor

I'm filled to the brim, but also glad to be back in the apartment with my dear partner. I've picked up my car, which has been repaired, and returned the rental car. Tomorrow my familiar life returns, but I've got a hankering to stir things up. We'll see what happens.
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A beautiful place for a retreat

Young deer

Every morning three of the four of us ladies start the day with a nice three-mile walk. With each year that passes, I've noticed more deer, which seem completely unfazed as they stroll by or lie in the grass, looking up with little curiosity at the people passing by. It must be an idyllic place for them to live.

It's actually a lovely place for most creatures, including people, at least at this time of year. This morning when I'm on our walk, I'll be thinking of my usual Saturday morning walk with many more of us ladies enjoying the fall colors. I'll be present in spirit in Bellingham, but I'll be here on Vashon.

I miss my normal routine a little, but it's been such a fruitful time here as I spend my days writing and sharing, with me getting all fired up once again to find a way to write some fiction pieces, short stories, something to spice things up. A little cinnamon, nutmeg for sure, and cardamom suitable to the time of year. Fall is such a pensive time for me, with the return of the rain and cold weather, instead of waking each day to the early sun and birdsong. Yep, the season has definitely changed and I must change along with it.

it is a serious thing // just to be alive / on this fresh morning / in this broken world. (Mary Oliver)

I hope you have a wonderful day out there while I enjoy the final weekend of our retreat on Vashon Island, a magical place.
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Vashonista once again

Me, Jann, Sandi, Deb at the Tea House in town

Well, our Vashonista group is shrinking. When we started out six years ago, we were six, then five for a couple of years, and this time, we are four. Neither Sally nor Linda are here for what is likely to be our very last year at the Lavender Hills Farmhouse. Renting the six-bedroom farmhouse for five nights split between four is much different than between six. Linda was going to attend this year and graciously paid her share, but I'm thinking it's probably time for us to make a change anyway.

The living room, looking out on the bay

It's every bit as beautiful this year as it was every year before, but we do seem to be rattling around in it a little more than in past years. I am the only one in the basement, with one of two bedrooms on the main floor occupied, and the suite and other upstairs room occupied by Deb and Sandi. I am using the smaller of the basement bedrooms as a place to charge my devices.

Quartermaster Harbor

Last year we went kayaking on this bay, but today three of the four of us did our usual three-mile walk before settling down to work on creative writing for the day. We started out the door just before the sun came up and enjoyed reminiscing about previous years. We are the only three that walked every single morning, rain or shine, and it was truly a lovely feeling to be back here, walking in the brisk cool air with my friends. We saw at least six deer out for their breakfast at various places, obviously very accustomed to human activity.

Mt. Rainier shining on the horizon

When the weather is fine as it is today, we have a magnificent view of Mt. Rainier from the back porch of the farmhouse. You can see a bit of the harbor, too. It's a beautiful place even in the rain, but right now it's spectacular. On the way back to the farmhouse this morning, we saw that a new place has opened up just a block from the house, The Burton Inn, a bistro and restaurant. The innkeeper, Deborah, was not open yet, but she saw us looking and invited us in for coffee and scones, although we had no money to pay her.

At the Burton Inn this morning

It's a lovely place and opened not long after our visit here last year. We made reservations for dinner there tonight and will, I'm sure, enjoy a wonderful meal, if the menu is any indication. Once we returned to the farmhouse, we got ready for a day's worth of creative writing. We are finished for the day, which is why I'm writing my post now. We are relaxing (Jann) or shopping (Deb and Sandi) or catching up on blog writing and reading (me).

So that's what is happening in my life today. We'll rinse and repeat tomorrow, unless we feel like changing things up a little. We're on a vacation with writing at the center, so we can do whatever feels best. I hope to get a post up here on Saturday, unless I forget (smile). We will drive back to our respective homes on Monday morning. Until then, I'm a full-time writer.
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Tuesday post on a Monday

Our garden sunflowers

I know, I know: it's not Tuesday yet, but since I forgot to write a Saturday post, I figured I'd just continue to mess up the week's schedule. It's going to be a different week, anyway. Tomorrow I will take my damaged car to the body shop and leave it to be fixed, then pick up my rental car and take off for Vashon Island on Wednesday. In between then and now, I'll finish packing. Since I will miss my usual Thursday hike, I'll be posting something about my retreat instead. Just a mixed-up week.

Our season's garden is just about over, but these beautiful sunflowers are still going strong. A few have begun to droop, but there are others that will probably not get a chance to bloom at all. I was looking at one of them and saw this pretty ladybug nestled inside.

Ladybug in the sunflower

It amazes me what good pictures my iPhone can take. The depth of field is not very deep, but I managed to get the ladybug in focus, even if the leaves in the foreground are blurry.

I am busy trying to remember everything I'm going to need for the week. When I return, my car will be fixed and perhaps the week after will be normal. I'll try to stay out of the way of huge tow trucks!
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My poor damaged car

Ouch!

This time, it wasn't my fault. I was on my way to yoga this morning, when I stopped to allow a woman and her daughter cross at a pedestrian crosswalk in a roundabout, right in front of a bus stop. Little did I know that I would be crashed into by a—wait for it—a tow truck! Here's how it happened. Take a look at the roundabout.

Roundabout on the way to Fairhaven

I was traveling on the road in the upper right-hand area and was past Wharf Street, when I saw a mother and her daughter waiting at the crosswalk as you enter Boulevard. I stopped to let her cross just at the same time a big tow truck came up Wharf Street and didn't see me. I have a very low profile in my little Honda Civic, and he was high up in the cab. When he hit me, we both pulled over into the bus pullout (just above the Boulevard lettering) and assessed the damage. He was very apologetic and we both exchanged insurance and contact information. I was able to drive the car, and all the taillights seem to be working.

Once I got home and talked to SG, we called the tow truck company, and they asked if I would be willing to deal with it privately and not involve the insurance companies. We agreed after they said they will pay for everything AND pay for me to rent a car for my trip to Vashon Island next week. The only fly in the ointment would be if they don't hold up their end of the bargain, but I think they will.

The next problem was trying to make sure the damaged fender doesn't fall off. I took it to my fisherman friend Gene, who for no reason other than he's a great guy, put screws in the front and back of the damaged fender to keep it in place until it can be fixed.

When I called to get an estimate on the damage, it will be October 11!! Work on the car won't happen until December, unless I decide to take it elsewhere. In any event, it's driveable until then, and I will get to drive a cool rental to Vashon Island for my five-day writing retreat. So all is working out just fine, I'd say.
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Vashon Island adventure

Looking like I know what to do

My writers' retreat is behind me for another year, but I am filled with wonderful memories of the five days we spent together, with quite an adventure last Sunday: we rented kayaks and a guide and went out in Quartermaster Harbor on what turned out to be a perfect day. I had never before been in a kayak and was more than a little anxious about it. Sandi, too, was a first-timer. No more! We are both no longer neophytes. After two hours in the salt water, meandering around in rented kayaks, we learned how to paddle, turn, speed up, slow down, and basically how to save our lives if we were to overturn. (Nobody did.)

Linda, me, Sandi, Jann, Deb rafting up

I also learned about "rafting up," where we all get close to each other's kayaks and grab ahold of the paddles. It allowed Erin, our guide, to take this picture. It was all so much fun, and although I was worried about whether I'd even be able to move my arms the next day, I was surprised to find that other than a tiny bit of sensation in my upper arms, I was just fine! About twenty minutes in, I was getting worried because my arms felt so tired already, but Erin showed me what I was doing wrong (mostly gripping the paddle tightly and not pushing with the opposite arm). What a difference, once I found out how to do it right!

We have all made the commitment to come back for another writers' retreat next October, and Erin, Director of Fun for Vashon Watersports, has agreed to help us decide whether we will have another day on the water next year or help find us another exciting adventure on the island.

And there is so much I need to process from the writing we did, but that will be for another time. I'm a little tired from such an intense week, so for the present, it's going to be a little R&R. A happy tired, though.
:-)

Our Saturday ritual

Linda, Sandi, Deb, me, Jann

We Vashonistas are taking a break today from our intense schedule of the past two days, with morning and afternoon writing sessions. In a little while, we'll have an afternoon session, but we spent the morning doing what has become our Saturday ritual: breakfast at the Hardware Store (a local restaurant) and then a saunter over to the Farmers' Market. Smaller than ever this year, the vendors were under tents to keep out of the rain. It was indeed still sprinkling a little, and overnight it rained heavily. We were fortunate that it had mostly stopped when we took the picture above. (Thanks to the passerby for the great photos.)

Since this is our fifth year, we had t-shirts designed by my friend Neil, a skydiving friend from years ago, who gave me a super deal on them. They are lavender (of course), since we are staying at the Lavender Hill Farm for the fifth year. Our shirts say: "Vashonista: 5th Reunion, October 2016."

We have one more full day here, tomorrow, and then Monday we will head back into our lives, with another wonderful retreat behind us. I am having a great time, with plenty of blog fodder, and much, much more.
:-)

Fifth year on Vashon Island

Yesterday's view from Quartermaster Harbor

Yesterday, after the five of us arrived separately by ferry on Vashon Island for our fifth annual writers' retreat, three of us went for a three-mile walk. The three-mile loop takes us by the harbor, and the brilliant blue skies and fluffy white clouds made quite a spectacle, as you can see here. Then we went back to join the others at our wonderful Lavender Hill Farm to make ourselves comfortable in our respective rooms. I have always stayed in one of the basement rooms, until this time. I am ensconced in the suite, for the first time, and now everyone will have had a chance to experience it.

The large suite, my room for five days

The bed is huge, and the separate bath and sitting room are incredibly spacious. I felt a little swallowed up by all the space, at first. After having slept there last night and getting a great night's sleep, I can see why everybody wants to have that room.

Deb, our facilitator, making a bouquet

This morning we began the work. Deb has taken several courses to learn how to facilitate writing groups using the Amherst Writers and Artists Method. We just spent our first morning session using writing prompts and giving and getting feedback from our impromptu writings. Every year I learn a little more about the method, Deb's proficiency increases, and I get to enjoy the company of my fellow Vashonistas.

The living room

This is our writing area; and we are taking a two-hour break for lunch Three of the women went off to town, while I sit here writing this post and Linda is taking a nap. She stayed up rather late, and as usual I was the first to leave last night so that I could get to bed at a reasonable hour and feel quite rested.

Although the writing work is valuable, it is also quite intensive, so we will continue to have a few days more of writing and then for the weekend will explore places on the island that we want to know more about. We leave on Monday, so I will be here on Saturday and will post from Vashon Island once more. We've got rain moving in, quite a lot of it for awhile, but we three walking buddies will head out each morning at 7:00am for the three-mile walk. It's the best way to start a day of mental exercise, I think. More later.
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Another nice Saturday

Sittin' on the dock of the bay

While I was on Vashon Island, we took a trip to Point Robinson, where there is a cool lighthouse and two cabins called Pt. Robinson Keepers' Quarters, which are available for weekend (or longer) rentals. During the off season, like right now, you can rent this beautiful cabin for $230/night (it sleeps up to six). We toured the place, but it doesn't hold a candle to Lavender Hill Farm. It was nice, however, to see some other options on the island. Plus I simply loved this rocking chair and didn't want to leave, as it gave me such a nice place to listen to the ocean and sit in the sun.

This morning when I went to walk with the ladies, we had been warned that Cindy, our leader, would be out of town, so we were on our own. Ten of us still met at 8:00am to head from the coffee shop down to the Village Green in Fairhaven. Since we didn't have anybody to tell us otherwise, three of the group decided to walk to Zuanich Park instead of on the scheduled walk. The rest of us took off with ME in the lead (that never happens). I used my new MapMyWalk app to find out how long and how fast we went.

A screen shot from my iPhone

Since I got to set the pace, I was quite pleased that we averaged almost 4 miles per hour, as you can see from the splits. I am a little annoyed that I paid $3 for this app and I still have to deal with advertisements at the bottom of the screen. Humph. Maybe it's time to find out what I must do to get rid of them. I thought it was only the free version that has ads. Time for a little research. But the walk was a very nice way to start the weekend, at any rate. (Update: to get rid of the apps, I need to pay a monthly fee. Grrr!)
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Vashonista Celebration

Afternoon light

My fellow Vashonistas have decided that we would like to share our final writing prompt with each other, and with all of you as well. We were given the last two lines of a famous Mary Oliver poem, "The Summer Day" and then in the next few minutes we each poured out our own take on these words.

Tell me, what is it you plan to do
With your one wild and precious life?

*   *   *

What, indeed? As I think back on what I have already done with my one wild and precious life, I am impressed with what my seven decades (and then some) have brought forth. What, indeed? A life of light and love, accomplishments too numerous to list, and a myriad mixture of friends and family that sustain me today. I look back and see that it is good.

But what will these next years be filled with? I am hoping to make sure that it will be a life of service that will create good and inclusion, rather than of closing up and diminishment. Ah, but what of Death, the leaving behind of all the love and joy I feel today?

What of that? I am determined to make a friend of Death, because I know that since I cannot stop for him, he will kindly stop for me. My wild and precious life is almost full and finished. And that's just right.

DJan Stewart, 5 October 2015

 And here are the others:

Deb Shucka
Jann Rayner Tresham
Sally French Wessely
Linda Granholm Myers
Sandi Pemberton Babbitt

Home from the Island

Four rowers caught at sunrise

I'm home after five nights at our Vashonista Lavender Hill Farm retreat, with mixed feelings. First, it's good to be home, but it's different here than it is on Vashon Island. I decided that if I ever were able to live on an island separated from the mainland by a ferry ride, it would be this place. It's a wonderful, magical island, and everything I think I might need is right there. Plus it's an easy ferry ride to Seattle, which of course has everything else.

I learned a ton about writing during this retreat, and I also learned an incredible amount about the six women who gathered together for the fourth time. That includes me, since I went without expectations and came back with an increased understanding of my own need to write, with a new sense of possibilities for now, and for the future.

Right now I'm pretty tired, since it's late in the afternoon and I took that picture right at sunrise today on our morning walk. Not everybody is an early riser, but Sandi, Deb and I took off this morning at 6:45 for a three-mile walk, which has become our standard way to get exercise over the past few days. It goes around Burton Acres Park, with a dock where we saw several rowers at the Jensen Point boathouse putting their boats into the water and heading out. I caught these Master rowers from the Vashon Island Rowers Club getting in some practice. We learned they were Masters rowers from the wife of one who was at the water's edge, who watched them and chatted with us for awhile.

We could not have had more wonderful weather during our stay, and as I placed my suitcase in the truck of Linda's car, fat raindrops fell from the sky, the first we had seen since we arrived. Perfect timing! And now I am looking forward to next October, when we will meet for the fifth time.

It was so much more than I anticipated, and I'll write more about it, I promise. For now, it's Wine O'Clock and I'm going to get lost in the Stephen King book On Writing. Deb gave us all a copy on the first day, and I dipped into it but had little time to read. And now I have all the time I need to process everything. Retirement is great.
:-)

Our Vashonista retreat so far

Deb at work

When we Vashonistas decided to get together for an entire six days this year, Deb agreed to organize a writing retreat for us while we are here. We already knew this setting well, having been here three times before, but now we not only have plenty of time, but we also are learning some great techniques to free up our inner writers. It's Saturday morning, and by this time in earlier visits, we would have only this one full day left to enjoy not only each other, but this wonderful Lavender Hill Farm setting. This year, we don't need to pack up and leave until Tuesday!

Deb gave us all copies of Stephen King's book On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, which is almost impossible to put down (like most of his books), but we've been very busy. We started on Thursday night after dinner (hence my short post), and yesterday we worked very hard together. I have been to writing workshops before, but it's been a long time, and I have not only already learned some new tools to move myself from stuck writing places, but also how to find buried treasures within myself.

Listening to our esteemed guest

And last night, Linda Reeder joined us for dinner. She lives in Seattle and was one of the original bloggers we hoped would become part of this group in the beginning. She's a very busy person but made the time to take the ferry ride to Vashon Island and meet us in person. We all know each other so very well from our blogs, so she slipped into the gathering as if she had always been here. She writes on Linda Letters and posts about her travels, family, home, and gardens galore.

The picture above shows how we have been working together: Deb would give us a prompt, such as "Beneath the surface" or "Find yourself in a car" and give us either a short time (five minutes) or a longer one (fifteen) and we write, longhand, in our notebooks. I've already discovered that writing that way, rather than on a laptop, frees up something inside, as if writing it down longhand allows another aspect of creativity to be loosened.

Linda joined us for that second prompt (finding oneself in a car) and we all shared what that brought up for us. It was so much fun! The very full day yesterday made me struggling to keep my eyes opened by 8:30pm. (Who am I kidding? That's when I always fall asleep.)

And now it's the next day, Saturday morning. I hear the creaking floorboard above me, letting me know that my fellow early riser (Deb) has begun her day, too. I think I'll go join her to start today's adventure!
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Vashonistas are together again

Our beautiful living room

We are together again for our fourth gathering. I am trying to get this done really quickly, so we can get started with our writing project, our first for our six days together. It's so nice to be back in this place that seems like home. It's a wonderful place, and the weather is fantastic for our entire trip.

Gotta go, Deb is pulling on my arm to get started the writing for tonight!
:-)

Time to start packing

Taken by Ross Schram von Haupt (Bellingham)

I found this picture of the supermoon/eclipse on the LoveBellingham site on Facebook, with credit given to a local real estate agent (linked to his page underneath the picture). It's pretty darn wonderful. I'm afraid I didn't get any pictures, because I ended up drinking wine with my next door neighbor and had a bit more than usual. I decided I wasn't in any shape to go looking for the perfect spot to take pictures. I knew there would be some wonderful ones.

One of my friends at the gym told me of some friends of hers who drove all the way to Artist Point (an hour and a half drive) in order to photograph the eclipse. It was so cold that they were unable to get out of their car for awhile, and then their hands kept freezing as they set up the camera. And they had to wait for the moon to rise above Mt. Shuksan, so for a good while they were battling the freezing temperature. It was cold down here, too, so I can only imagine.

Only two more sleeps before I get together with fellow Vashonista friend Linda and take the ferry to Vashon Island. It's going to be wonderful to have so much time! Instead of three days/two nights, it will be six days/five nights. Wow! I'll be skipping the Trailblazer hike on Thursday, but I'll probably manage to get something up on here from Vashon before the day is over. I feel a bit like a kid going off to camp!
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Vashonistas meet again

Linda, Jann, DJan, Deb, Sandi

Well, this year we are only five Vashonistas, as Sally had to cancel at the last minute because of illness. We are so sorry she's not with us for our third gathering at the Lavender Hill Farm on Vashon Island. We are all blogging women who got together two years ago here for the first time, and now I believe we are on a roll! This is such a fine way for us to meet each other as "skin friends," since we already knew so much about each other from our blogs. Links to our previous meetings are here and here.

And for the third time we had our Saturday breakfast at the Hardware Store (a restaurant on the main drag) and now it's a tradition. We also had the same waitperson, and we asked if she remembered us, which is doubtful, considering the number of visitors that come every year, but she didn't let on that she didn't remember us.

The view from the back porch of the farmhouse

It is such a peaceful and wonderful place, and we had a great time last night as we ate Jann's wonderful lasagna and enjoyed some great uproarious laughter together. I just returned from a short walk with Sandi and Deb so I could write this post, but there will be more tomorrow on my other blog. I'm really glad I came and I sure wish the rain would stop so we could perhaps capture a view of Mt. Rainier (which is actually available from one of our previous visits here). You can never have too many views of mountains, can you?
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