Still Looking

The ocean touches all of my five senses. Waves offer stereophonic stimulus. It surrounds me as I watch. It is vast.

The air becomes full of the salty smell of fish playing in their liquid world. It’s cold there. As the last layers of waves cover my toes I feel the contrast of its coldness with the warmth of the sun’s blanket.

I’m noticing how I seek out nature just to have a sense of calm. On the coast of southern California nature seems to be a little bit contrived. Coming from Arizona where the landscape is God’s creation, here it seems manipulated by human hands. Even beautiful gardens developed against the backdrop of the natural waters of the Pacific Ocean are intentionally planted to play with the blending of the sky and the sea.

The Yoganunda Ashram in Encinitas is a place for meditation and pause. We stop in the town for lunch and spend the afternoon. As I sit, I watch the water carefully and I become aware of my surroundings once again. People whisper with each other as they meander through the gardens.

I am left with the memories of the water at Fort Cochin. It calls out to me, the vivid vision of water meeting land, meeting humankind, meeting God.

It is rich, so rich. The food, the Yoga, my friends, strangers who become friends. As I travel further and further I fear my friends will become strangers.

Holy ground is everywhere. I remember it from the bridges of Rishikesh, or from the streets of Jerusalem. I notice it on the rocks of Drumbeg Park on Gabriola and the depths of the canyons in Arizona. I try to feel it on the streets of Los Angeles. Access to my spiritual awareness fails me. It gets lost in the bustling activities of California and in the busyness of every minute. The consumer mentality is everywhere and there is a bit of ironic cynicism. I forget to sit quietly and I sometimes miss the important messages of Nature. I strive to stay close to my self and to make the distance manageable.

The desire to be close to nature inspires my need for quiet and peace. I don’t want to try so hard. I just want to be comfortable in my surroundings. The Grand Canyon, so truthful and vast in it’s presentation is so big and yet so easy to take in. I am on my way back.