Dear Friends,

    Survived another year in Idaho (with liberal out of state respites.)  Boise booms.  On the drive west on four lane State Street to yoga classes Tuesday and Thursday mornings my head spins with what springs up overnight (and the honks and angry gestures waved my way from rigs that rage past me.  Yikes.)  Our neighborhood is the same, though a number of nearby homeowners took the opportunity to sell their starter homes at top dollar, and move up.  Our small homeowners group is considering hiring out management of homeowners dues.  Who has time!  Fields are developing at the speed of light; mercifully Pasty behind me is a holdout who still keeps horses so I still have a restful backyard view towards the hills.
    Big year for gospel/singing!  (See photo below which makes it look like I can really sing!)
    Life looks the same, but doesn't feel it.

SAME.  Yoga classes and workshops.  Chan’s cuisine, Donna’s pies (she's marketing solo now).  Mexico.  Prison volunteer, year #2.  Buddhist meditation.  Sunday evening car camps in the hills to read and write.   Church and gardens.  Book club.

NEW.  Christian meditation comes to St Mary's.  Earth shoes.  Dad's story/WWII reading.  Neck reclamation with chiropractor/homeopath.  Vineyard greens/recycles.  Concert of the Cross.  ; yoga volunteer with jail women; produce stand loses pie maker Donna; solo pie sales not in place yet.  Now we are 60.  Christian meditation comes to St Mary’s.  Earth Shoes.  Concert of the Cross
 

SHORT FORM

Jan.    No snow.  Great rotten apple cleanup and prune with Jeff & Axel L Rosalie Sorrels at the Egyptian
        Theater J  Vineyard celebrates epiphany with “Luther” J
Feb.    Mild winter continues.  Gospel workshop #3 with Oh Happy Day composer L  Mexico.  Yogi/ chiropractor
        Norman Allard and Father Laurence Freeman workshops J   Feb 27 - Vineyard "greens" J
Mar.    Concert of the Cross J
Apr.    Easter in Jacksonville/IL/Villa Park & Kankakee; overnight DIA L  Theatre – "Working: the musical";
        The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail J  Benefit gospel concert; philharmonic with hair cutter (short in
        back) extraordinaire, Carla.  Qigong in Colorado J Finding Fish, Antwone Q Fisher J
May     Spring rains, 1st 2 wks green Idaho.  Listened to Studs Terkel’s The Good War J  Folklife w/o Marli;
        City overload L  Sprinkler expert Gregg to the rescue JJ
June    Tassajara/CA visits.  Church garden.  Ascension Monastery J
July    Yoga with Norman Allard J  Gardening.
Aug.    Aunt Mona Ray; sleeping with catholics and new moon over silent retreat in 1000 Oaks; Ojai J  Full
        moon through trees, simian rendezvous 2 in Bear Valley.  Song of the Gorilla Nations, Prince-Hughes
     J  George crashes.  River baptism.
Sept.   Qigong; Regina Laudis visit J
Oct.    Karen Armstrong at BSU J  Volunteer appreciation nite at prison J  Illinois.  Premier fall colors in
        Idaho too J  Leslie James teaches in Boise again.
Nov.    Memorial service for Marli, Seattle.  Visitors from Oregon!  Turkey and dressing in Colorado.
        Computer starts melting/smelling; tigerdirect Sony arrives.  Still setting up LL.
Dec.    Sally from Juneau!  Cold and colder; then 60 degree Christmas in Bellingham!

LONG FORM

   From tsunami through hurricanes and earthquakes, the planet had quite a year.  Old taoists recognized a connection between minds and nature,  weather and earth.  Experienced my own tsunamis, waves of questioning what's meaningful and particularly where I wanna end up.  The wisdom of Joseph Campbell [Mythos series] helped me through the winter.  Continued reading Thomas Merton and Father Laurence Freeman, able guides through the rough waters of this year.  Yoga remained my choice for balance.  Christianity, my choice for meaninglful weekly dharma talks and community; Buddhism, my everyday guide to letting go and accepting, and understanding my own cycle of living and dying.  Sitting still with felons--the light of my life.
    A year of finding/meeting with financial, tax and legal professionals, getting a will drawn up.  (Thanks to brother Jamie for support.)   Concurrently increasingly clear the bottom line is: much as I love the West, don't wanna die in Idaho.  Noooo.
    Ever since the memorial service for mom that Scott arranged in Jacksonville March 2004, my perspective on Boise/The West has shifted.  By small shifts I've been startled to realize life would go on if I let go of the church I love and learn so much from.  Months later as I lay in bed, realized though I've invested bucks, heart and hands in the house, whined and felt owned, not owner, I could let go of those hardwood floors and the yard even though bushes and trees are finally underway.  (Don't know about the rhubarb!  Mighty attached to backyard rhubarb all season.)  Won't try to rent; sell, accept the inevitable herd of dogs/cats clawing/whizzing on the new floors and carpets I enjoyed.  Even if I stay in Boise, oughta relocate to something warmer, cozier and more welcoming year 'round.
    Slowly mentally shifting and letting go.  Still unable to envision life and health without a few yoga classes.  It's taken years to establish classes with folks I so enjoy sharing yoga with.  Gulp.  Even more alarming is the thought of life without Boise chiropractor Dr A.
    The idea of retreating to the Midwest moves like a tsunami.  Almost ready to give up doing my own thing Out West and to surrender to whatever's next.  Can imagine snooping around cemeteries for mom and dad's roots; getting involved in community, taking final exams back where I started!  !  Could be your last chance to visit Idaho (while I'm an Idaho-ho-ho-an)!

Love and Peace,
Jeannie

 

June - Tenting in the Vantanas (CA)	Lunch time yogis
July - Floating the Middle Fork (Salmon)	July - Soaking by the Middle Fork
August - Finding Mona Ray in Anaheim	August - Now we are six(ty), Bear Valley ID
August - River blessing	September - Bon voyage to Dane w Chan
Fall at Glencest (home)	Fall - "apple" of my eye - heirloom brandywine
October - sing out at St Marks	December - work out at the fitness club

More than anyone needs to know: HOLIDAY LETTER ARCHIVES - photos added! - click on year

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?*+. Say HAPPY NEW YEAR to Idaho! ?.*