Tuesday August 19th: After light fills the Pony, I continue to doze off and on and when I get up, Clifford is out sitting in the sun, still in his pajamas. Nice comfortable start to the day. I get my spot set up, looking down toward the river

and read the next lesson in Course in Miracles. I have been interested in it for years, but now that I have a book that has been lent to me, I find that I am not resonating with many of the lessons thus far. It seems more useful for me to be reminded to be grateful for all and to accept that there is good somewhere in any situation, rather than being told that it is not real. My life on this planet seems real to me and the question is how to make it meaningful and joyful. However, I am willing to pursue the Course for awhile longer.

I spend more time with the river, taking my role of TVK (Traveling View Keeper) both seriously and joyfully.

For those who missed my earlier declaration of being a View Keeper, the phrase was coined by Dewitt Jones, my most favorite photographer. I have modified my position to TVK since we will be doing a lot of traveling in the next months (years?), so the view will be changing often. However, the importance of awareness and appreciation for nature is of vital importance everywhere, all of the time, so TVK is a valid modification of the beautiful concept.

I had plans to write letters and edit photos, but I started reading Sherlock Holmes, a big fat book of stories that Clifford got on the sale table at Barnes and Nobles yesterday – and that is how I spent my day, a bit of a change of pace for me.

Wednesday August 20th: Wake up to rain and distant thunder. I gather twigs and wood, and get a nice fire going in the rain.

During a lull in the rain, I read the next section of the Course, and after breakfast, the rain lets up enough that I can sit by the fire to write in my journal without too many raindrop blotches on my page. Later, I pick more June berries to take back to dry,

munching as I go.

I take a few more photos, saying good-bye to this place for now. Hard to leave, but we must pack up and head back to our other life, a life that still needs us in our typical roles, at least for a while longer.