Such delight
Last night our power went out. Well, not just ours, all those on our circuit. I heard the transformer blow, and then, like that, darkness and silence. I love it. I lit candles and went out to enjoy the moon. It will be full in four nights so the moon is very bright. In the past, when the wind blew hard, I would have candles ready, but last night was an unexpected treat.
I'm going on a silent women's retreat camping trip in August, and since REI is having their big sale this week, I went to buy a new sleeping bag. I bought the last one over twenty years ago, and it was bought for the cold in the mountains in Nepal. This trip is on Mt. Tam so I knew I needed something light. Who knew there were so many kinds of sleeping bags. There is a men's section, and a ladies section. I was informed that the ladies bags have more padding and warmth in certain areas and are narrower in the shoulders and wider in the hips. I could see we wear our sleeping bags these days. I didn't need such a specialized bag, so got a generic one, and then, fell for the three and a half inch blow-up pad. Why not? I'm not backpacking in. I also roamed the store and bought a beautiful blue head lamp. When the power went out, I knew it was meant to be a trial run. Excitedly I got my head lamp figuring I could read in the dark, but who wants to read when there's so much excitement in a night brightened with candle and moon light?
In the night we heard chain saws as PGE worked to restore power. I saw from the clocks that power was out six and a half hours. I know we may gripe when we pay our gas and electric bill, but there is something very comforting about knowing people are working through the night to restore one's power. I know there are huge problems in the world, and yet last night was so restorative: candles, darkness, silence, the moon, and an infrastructure that brings us together so that I am here, without running down to Starbucks to get my wi-fi/power fix, telling you about my night.
I'm going on a silent women's retreat camping trip in August, and since REI is having their big sale this week, I went to buy a new sleeping bag. I bought the last one over twenty years ago, and it was bought for the cold in the mountains in Nepal. This trip is on Mt. Tam so I knew I needed something light. Who knew there were so many kinds of sleeping bags. There is a men's section, and a ladies section. I was informed that the ladies bags have more padding and warmth in certain areas and are narrower in the shoulders and wider in the hips. I could see we wear our sleeping bags these days. I didn't need such a specialized bag, so got a generic one, and then, fell for the three and a half inch blow-up pad. Why not? I'm not backpacking in. I also roamed the store and bought a beautiful blue head lamp. When the power went out, I knew it was meant to be a trial run. Excitedly I got my head lamp figuring I could read in the dark, but who wants to read when there's so much excitement in a night brightened with candle and moon light?
In the night we heard chain saws as PGE worked to restore power. I saw from the clocks that power was out six and a half hours. I know we may gripe when we pay our gas and electric bill, but there is something very comforting about knowing people are working through the night to restore one's power. I know there are huge problems in the world, and yet last night was so restorative: candles, darkness, silence, the moon, and an infrastructure that brings us together so that I am here, without running down to Starbucks to get my wi-fi/power fix, telling you about my night.