Moonlight Paddle

For many years now I have been planning on signing up to take a moonlight paddle down at the bay. Each year I never get around to it and put it off til the next year. Last night my dream finally came to be. I had always thought when the time came for me to actually do this paddle I would be with a friend or two but as it turned out they were all busy so I decided to go it alone and do it as a meditative paddle. When I had called there were only two others signed up so I planned for a quiet evening.

Kayaks, at the ready!

I arrived at Maple Bay in plenty of time so I could sit by the water but the kayaks were already out and there were many. Fifteen people would be going kayaking including two small children. My idea of a meditative paddle quickly disappeared. There was though another woman paddling on her own so I would have company. The skies were clear and the water calm, it would be a nice evening on the water. As we paddled away from the launch site I looked up to the moon and thanked God for this time and for sharing with me creation’s beauty. I breathed in deeply the sea air, allowed my body to relax in the cockpit of the kayak and felt so blessed.



Heading out on calm waters

We followed the coast line down towards the marina. People chatted and I could tell it would be a fun night. It was like playing follow the leader going under all the bridges out to the docks. The moon had already risen above the trees but it was still daylight out so the moon was very faded. We reached the place where we would cross over to the other shoreline and by now dusk had arrived. Instead of following each other we passed in one solid group so that we could be seen by other boaters. Each kayak had a flasher light on the back and a flashlight on the front so it was easy to see each other.



"Follow the leader" along the coastline

The moon was absolutely splendid. It was what they call a super moon, the time when the full moon is very close to our planet. It was huge with a full face and shone brightly down upon us as the darkness surrounded our kayaks. Going along the coastline heading north east the moon was now down behind the trees and we could look down into the dark water and see the phosphoresce. It was fun to put my hand in the water and watch the water dance with greenish lights. It was beautiful and reminded me of when I was a child and we would have sparklers outside and write our names with them in the darkened night. Eventually we reached a small little bay where we all gathered and tethered ourselves together for our snack break of chocolate brownies, lemon squares, ginger cookies and hot chocolate...what a treat!



Moonlight reflecting on ocean waters

We headed back in pure darkness, nothing to be seen but the moonlight reflecting down off the water. Looking ahead I could see the other kayaks’ flashing lights so I knew which direction to head. It took about half an hour to return to the beach and I used that time to quietly paddle on my own. There was some distance between all the kayaks so all I could hear was the sound of my paddle in and out of the water. It was so peaceful. I thought about how strange our world is. How there are people dying from terrible diseases, people terrified of being hit by missiles as their homes are attacked, people struggling as their water is contaminated from an industrial accident, so many terrible events are happening in our world and yet here I was, on my small island home, paddling across the water by moonlight. It doesn’t really seem right that our world is this way. That some are so blessed and others live in horrid conditions. It makes me thankful for all that I have and helps me to try not to waste a minute of time. To not only take time to help others but to make the most of each day and take note of the beauty in creation that I am so lucky to be surrounded by. This planet has so many fascinating and amazing places to see that there is no possible way I will be able to see it all but what I can do is spend time exploring the island that I call home and to always be thankful for all that there is. Thankful for moonlight paddles, for the silence that darkness brings, for the physical ability to be active in the outdoors and for all of the blessings creation gifts to us. A moonlit paddle on calm ocean waters, life doesn’t get much better.

Coming Down from the Hill Top

It’s been a month since my month long holiday in the UK. It was a fantastic holiday time spent exploring coastlines, hills, valleys and towns. I also made sure to attend church each week to continue my spiritual practise of worship. I continued to reflect on my spiritual life as I walked the trails, climbed the hills and swam in the cold North Sea. Being out in nature brings me closer to God than sitting in a church service and yet the church gifts to me the friendships of people following the same faith. The greatest gift this holiday brought to me was being able to experience my faith outside the church. Travelling with a minister and his wife allowed me to experience prayers and communion on hilltops. It brought my faith outside the church and into nature. For a short while I experienced the best of both worlds and am so grateful for this gift.

As I sat on the hilltops (really mountain tops) over in Scotland and looked down on the valleys below I realized how small I am in this vast world. Not only in size but in hearing the history that goes back thousands of years I gained a new perspective on how short my life here will be here. At one point I realized I am smaller than a speck of dust on a windowsill and that my life will be over in just a quick flash of time. The things that go on in my life, the things I worry about, the things I complain about really don’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Each moment is so precious because when you look back on your life what happened forty years ago seems like just yesterday.

Looking out towards the ocean from the hilltop - Dunadd

Returning to the “real” world after a month has been very difficult. In the prayers on the hilltops my friend reminded me how we all have to come down from the mountain top and back to our lives but when we look down from the mountain top and into the valley below we can see how really small our worries and struggles are. Hopefully we come down with the realization that life is a gift to be treasured and each day needs to be fully lived in whatever way one can. I have come down from the mountains filled with thanksgiving for all that I have but in many ways I am still struggling. I returned to the death of a few church members, good people who died too young. I returned to the news that two of my good friend’s siblings are dying from cancer both only ten years older than I am. I returned to read the news each day of unnecessary wars in far off countries. Once again I am reminded how precious life is.

Down in the valley - "Life in the "real" world

I find it so frustrating as the news continues to be filled with the deaths of war. These two groups of people, following different faiths, are ruthlessly killing men, women and children over a small piece of land. There is no reason why they cannot share the land and live together in peace just as we do in the western world. When I read the news and see how different people’s lives and struggles are in this vast world it just astounds me. In one country we have people using missiles to kill innocent people, in another we have athletes from various countries gathering to compete in many different sporting events cheering each other on, shaking hands and sharing hugs with their competitors. How can one part of th world be consentrating on what might seem as frivlous sports while other people are being so destructive and taking innocent lives. People are dying enough from horrid diseases in this world, we don’t need to add to it but sending off missiles and creating wars.

When my time on this planet ends I hope I can look back on my life and be thankful for all that I have enjoyed, all that I have done, and hopefully be able to say I made a difference in one person's life. I can’t imagine what the leaders of this world who have caused such destruction will think about their life when they look back. Will they feel remorse over the lives they have senselessly taken, will they suddenly realize that they have wasted their own gift of life? I truly believe that all people of this world can live in peace and that all people want to live in peace but it will take the leaders of this world to stop and listen and really hear each other’s stories before peace will happen. The leaders of our countries who stand by and do nothing are just as guilty as the leaders of those countries who enter into war. Life is a precious gift and each of us deserves to and should have the right to live it as best we can in a world of peace. There is enough for all if we would only share what resources we have, including the land and water that this planet has gifted to us.

What an amazing world we live in....the view from Schiehallion

I have returned home but a part of me remains on the hilltops looking down into the peaceful valleys of Scotland, rejoicing in all that I have been blessed to be a part of. It is an escape from the worries, an escape from the news, it is a place that brings me peace and thankfulness and reminds me to live each day to it’s fullest.