Recharging

I haven’t been blogging much recently, nor have I felt much of a need to. Blogging is a lot of things to me: a journal, a scrapbook, a way to share our lives with friends and family near and far, a way of reflecting on life as it happens, and a hobby that helps me pause for a moment to renew my spirit and refocus when life gets crazy.

The last month has been busy, but a different kind of busy. Life in the Alaskan Bush involves a lot of what we call “hurry up and wait”, and time is just different out here. We scramble to pack our things for the floatplane, but then the weather changes and we wait for hours (and sometimes days) until we can fly. 

The number of salmon returning to spawn in the rivers dictates when we will fish, and our fishing schedule revolves around the tide. Though it took me nearly a decade to shift to thinking in terms of tide instead of time, there is something wholesome and comforting about settling into the rhythm of nature and being flexible for whatever comes our way.

It is quiet here. My soul needs quiet. I’ve never been one of those people who need a TV or radio on for noise. I rarely even listen to the radio on my short commute. And don’t even get me started on the constant clamor of high school students…I have been relishing the serenity here, which is punctuated by the (mostly) happy sounds of my three children, boat motors, and the occasional airplane. 

Of course, the air hums with natural sounds, all of which comfort and soothe me: wind in the tall grass, the creek that runs next to our cabin, birds trilling their flute-like voices, rain drumming on the tin roof. One morning, when I stepped outside to take a picture of the mist-shrouded mountains, I could even hear the tide falling as it slowly trickled down through the gravel on the beach.

We’ve been busy fishing, but that is something I enjoy. I actually appreciate the physical aspect of the work and giving my mind a break from the mental juggling I have to do as a teacher. It is a nice change of pace to not have anything to do after we have finished up with the day’s work. Teaching never stops. It is a never-ending cycle of planning, grading, data entry, professional development, meetings, and occasional parent contacts for over 130 students. There is always something else I could or should be doing. Call me crazy, but I feel like it is a nice change of pace to be covered in fish slime and kelp, standing ankle-deep in jellyfish. I take off my rain gear, and I’m pretty much done until the next time we go out. And I even get a pretty good workout. :)

The girls joined us when we picked the nets one evening.

Life is balancing out. I am recharging. I am at peace.

I’ll try to post again soon, but it might be a few days until I can recharge my computer batteries. We only run the generator every few days for laundry and all of this rambling has run it down pretty low…