Mary's Heartbeats

I have never done so much walking.  I have walked briskly along a paved pathway in the July heat, and traipsed up rocky, dirt paths winding round the foothills.  I have had my steps counted with ranges of at least 10,000 to 14,000 and at times have reached heights up to  90 floors.  And yet I am sure despite the sweat, and heavy breathing that comes with those steps, they are nothing compared to the steps of those who lived so long ago. It's hard to imagine what it must have been to live up to 800-900 years, when daily you faced the fact of surviving.  Enlisting your ever growing family to build a life with you, quickly you realized, man never was designed to go it alone. From the very beginning, companions were needed to complement us, to fill in the gaps, for those inherent shortcomings we no doubt have within ourselves.  And everyday required you to walk. . .  So I have pondered for awhile, Enoch, a name just mentioned in a genealogy.  He w...

Jasmine and I have a morning ritual.  Jazzy girl is my faithful consistent German Shepherd who greets me every morning around 5:30 or 5:45 AM at the latest, with mild yelps of "time to get up and take me for my walk!"  At times I try to subdue her with constant hand strokes of love upon her face, but if they appease, it only is for a few minutes.  More likely, I ease out of bed, begin to brew the coffee and take a bit more time to wake up on my couch, with a blackberry candle lit and my journal in hand.  Jasmine paces and pauses at my feet, eagerly awaiting the time for her leash to flip on and the back door to open for our morning walk. After arriving back to our yard, Jazzy stretches out on the patio deck and I join her with my legs embracing her.  She responds by nuzzling her bear like head and neck into my chest, as I pet her with nice long strokes along her back.  The more I do that, the more she leans in, and I tell her again, that she is the mo...