Friends from my past and present gathered around this table in Bolinas for breakfasts and dinners, games of Mille Bourne, and long conversations in remembrance of things past and planning of what remains unclear in our futures.
I returned home to Bolinas early this month. Ten days on the Big Mesa, staying in a small cottage a short walk from where I lived for what was without doubt the most important part of my life. The time when I mothered, when I recovered and reconnected with my poetic self. Where I loved most passionately.
It is possible to go home again. To reconnect with old friends, to bring along current friends and share the wonder of a place. I was fortunate that my daughter had returned to pick up much of what she had left behind (including her two dogs) to finalize her move to Nicaragua. They came out for several nights, giving us the chance for walks and chats and traveling back to the wonder of her childhood.
So wonderful this, a journey backwards in time. Transported by the power of the forces of nature to long dormant memories. And to return slightly different.
Here are some pictures from my favorite place on earth.
I carry Bolinas in my DNA, I wrote once years ago. That will never change. My soul found its home here back in the late 70s and returning home nurtures me in a way nothing else ever has. Or probably ever will.
The art on Bolinas beach reminds me of "Butter Buddhas." The utter joy in the act of creation, then setting it free to the elements. Such an allegory for much of our lives.
Climate change has had a devastating impact on Bolinas. Eroding cliffs continue to claim so much of the town's waterfront, whole segments of roads lost now to the sea ...
A typical Bolinas morning. The 1% may think they own the town now, but some things never change ...a 'native' woman in pink emerges from the mist, dancing on the beach.
The Bench. Just months before I left Bolinas, my brother returned from his daily time-out here and said he had the strangest feeling that when he returned I would no longer be living here. At the time that seemed impossible.
The famous approach to Bolinas. The only indication a small sign indicating a road crossing up ahead. Blink and you've gone too far.
Kitchen Table Kibitzing is a community series for those who wish to share part of the evening around a virtual kitchen table with kossacks who are caring and supportive of one another. So bring your stories, jokes, photos, funny pics, music, and interesting videos, as well as links—including quotations—to diaries, news stories, and books that you think this community would appreciate. Readers may notice that most who post diaries and comments in this series already know one another to some degree, but newcomers should not feel excluded. We welcome guests at our kitchen table, and hope to make some new friends as well.