John & Anne Wiley

2012/02/14

Sacred Friendship

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,Relationships,SB Region — John @ 10:48

I believe that deep friendship has a sacred quality, in the sense that our very identity and sense of meaning in life is closely interwoven with interpersonal intimacy. Family carries bonds of closeness over our entire lifetime together, yet at least until maturity lacks the element of conscious choice.

Friendships that arise from consciously choosing each other and the process of exploring our deepest true selves together, this seems to me a powerful co-transformation accessible to those willing and able. This week we flew with adventurous and fascinating new friends, and the very next day went on an extended soul journey in playful and wide ranging conversation with an old friend. I cherish all that friendship awakens in me, and how it expands my enjoyment and appreciation of family.

All this comes to mind as I look at this pic of the Carrizo Plain’s iconic Painted Rock from our flight. A place where over millennia, friends and families have probably gathered.

0245 Place to Ponder

0245 Place to Ponder

2012/02/12

Rides

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,SB Region — John @ 08:31

A few years ago, few things were more fun than body surfing. The feel of the water around me. The rush when a set came in and a big one stood up to invite some fun. Unconsciously using past breaks on this day’s waves to calculate where this monster would break. Swimming hard to be at the right place. Just barely catching it, and then falling into the groove to ride until my mind started turning to the next wave and deciding whether to bail and try for it. Such pure physical, emotional and spiritual joy. Why would anyone ever do anything else?

0188 Smooth

0188 Smooth

It’s all Smooth somehow. Perfection. Now maybe if I’d ever gotten good on a board I’d still be out there, but as you know by now I’d rather be flying. Having been there makes watching a ride like this from our magic carpet all the more enchanting. There is a powerful Smooth for me on a good flight. Heck, on most flights. It might be something we see, or the song of Tripp’s engine, or a turn. Even landings sometimes are akin to catching that wave and feeling again the Smooth of a great ride.

2012/02/11

Hidden Gardens

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,People,Random,Relationships,SB Region — John @ 06:59

This area abounds with beautiful hidden gardens. Some are in yards protected by high walls and/or hedges, so few people ever see them.

0070 Symmetry

0070 Symmetry

Many of the walled gardens have some sort of symmetry. A mandala, a labyrinth, or often boxes and rows like this one in Montecito. Nearby are many breathtaking natural gardens, like Tangerine Falls.

0077 Tangerine Falls

0077 Tangerine Falls

With so little rain this Winter, it’s nearly dry. Even so, by all reports it’s Eden on the trail in and at the base. Of course, that hike is also reputed to be less than an idyllic stroll in the woods. But on this flight we noticed this garden perhaps even more enchanting, and a quiet pool still filled with sparkling water.

0080 Zen

0080 Zen

This garden of Zen so close to town is very easy to reach. With a helicopter to lower you down a long cable. Seriously, I wonder how many people have ever been here. Maybe we’ll fly closer next time to look for trails and a better angle for pix. Meanwhile I’m musing on the secret gardens within. How high are my walls, and how daunting the paths into the psyche? With continued effort, will I more often open the gates to share the places most precious? For me, sharing our Garden is the essence of life. That is why sharing the joy of flight so expands the moments aloft.

2012/02/10

Passage

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Inner World,Nature,Random,SB Region — John @ 01:33

Before a railroad line was built, the passage from Santa Barbara to L.A. was probably fastest by sea. With only sails that might have taken at least a day with good winds. For us it’s an easy half-hour and some, including diversions to check out things like this.

9990 Passage

9990 Passage

To me there’s something enchanting about this angle near the end of day, and the glow of roadway lighting. But all tunnels seem to invite a magic. You temporarily leave all the sights, sounds and smells of the everyday world. For a time you have the sensation of motion, but the variety of life is lost to a nearly featureless tube close around you. When you emerge from the other end, it’s often into quite different surroundings that are greatly accentuated by the deprivation of transit. Maybe the opposite of flying in some way, because the journey itself is so enriching. Earlier we diverted slightly to look at this massive boulder and the graffiti slab above it.

9939 Rock & Slab

9939 Rock & Slab

There are certainly many things more fun and fascinating than flying. I just can’t think of any. 🙂

2012/02/09

Chalk Rock

Filed under: Flying,Happiness,Has Photos,Nature,Random,SB Region — John @ 08:42

In the mountains South of Agoura Hills is a rock outcrop with several varieties of rock, including pure white chalk. As you can see at the upper-right, there are trails nearby so maybe people visit this site. Maybe they have for millennia.

9927 Chalk Rock

9927 Chalk Rock

Heading from there toward Santa Monica through the mountains stands another notable rock formation. I presume this is sea bed sediment, compressed and then tilted up by eons of geological activity that transformed sea floor to stone wall. The punctuation added by the road is pleasing to my eye.

9933 Floor to Wall

9933 Floor to Wall

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