I pushed off at Sellwood Riverfront park. The plan? Paddle the board toward the city. I wouldn’t make it all the way, but the journey looked good. I parked on a street nearly under Sellwood bridge and headed toward what I thought was a boat launch. It seemed that it had been one a long… Continue reading Stand-up paddle the urban Willamette
Tag: nature
Be the tree, strong and flexible: spring is in the air.
Wood is the element of spring. What are the conditions of spring and how do we notice, align, and incorporate with this season? This blog churns up a few notions about Chinese medicine from an elemental/seasonal perspective. We are all of this earth, so we have earthy elements. Studying the elements is a way to… Continue reading Be the tree, strong and flexible: spring is in the air.
Tend your life
It’s pussy willow season, did you know that? I’ve been out the last two evenings collecting gorgeous bundles along a nearby creek. I like harvesting them because you have to notice them, time it, pay attention. It feels old and sweet and real. While slogging around in my rubber boots tonight, I noticed two hawks,… Continue reading Tend your life
Field trip for the soul
I was feeling a little bummed out. I needed some different scenery. I had some things on my mind and they weren’t all happy things. What to do with a melancholic half day off? Leave town. First stop, the bird refuge. My spirit needed a rinse of water, sky, birds, rain. This is a story… Continue reading Field trip for the soul
The finish of the PCT, back from the wilderness
Remember when I interviewed Chance Fitzpatrick about halfway through his walk from Mexico to Canada? Here is that: http://www.maryannpetersen.com/?p=120 Chance kept going as a thru hiker and made it to Canada in good time. We decided to chat again at the end of his journey. I wanted to ask a few more questions. 1. Why… Continue reading The finish of the PCT, back from the wilderness
Sanctuary. Do you have one in your neighborhood?
Sometimes sanctuaries are just sitting there. You have no idea. I found one today, just a few miles from where I live. Cortesia Sanctuary is in the woods of South Eugene. Cortesia comes from Cortese, a 900-year-old French word, which means “quiet.” Just kidding, actually, it means “a deep, noble courtesy and reverence for the… Continue reading Sanctuary. Do you have one in your neighborhood?
Horse poem
Breath by Horse The elevator drops down centuries deep, below cured manure through the soft round belly Deep breathes of peace flare through velvet horse nostrils cool inhale hot exhale each breath grasps the heavens takes it down, pulses it through the dirt Mary Ann Petersen 2016
Zoöpolis Is Where It’s At
A thriving coexistence: cultivating Zoöpolis. Zoöpolis is a new word for me. Maybe you already know it? It has a z and an umlaut, so I already liked it, before I knew what it meant. Jennifer Wolch, a geographer coined this term. Definition: The place where the polis meets the zoo, an overlap of human… Continue reading Zoöpolis Is Where It’s At