I can't stand to miss out on special events and experiences, so this year I decided that attending the annual Thanksgiving Family Reunion was worth the cost of holiday airfare. On Thanksgiving day, 50 members of my extended family gathered together for a tasty potluck lunch and then enjoyed an afternoon and evening filled with a baby shower, an ornament exchange, televised football games, a book club discussion,
01/11/2009
Thanksgiving
01/10/2009
Alternate Thanksgiving
Three years ago my immediate family, two cousins, and a cousin-in-law started a tradition which has come to be known as "Alternate Thanksgiving." Since the early 1980s, my mom's side of the family has gathered every year for a family reunion on Thanksgiving Day in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Due to expensive holiday airfares, I missed attending the 2006 and 2007 Thanksgiving reunions, thus the Alternate Thanksgiving holiday was born. Now, every October I travel home to Amarillo, Texas to spend a week with my parents and sister's family. On the first weekend that I am home, Sara and Anne (cousins) and Tim (Anne's husband) come to Amarillo, and we all spend a fun filled, small scale reunion weekend together... just like the real Thanksgiving but in October!
Autumn is a beautiful season to visit the Panhandle of Texas, and if the weather cooperates we usually have a cookout in Palo Duro Canyon. We also carve jack-o-lanterns and do A LOT of visiting. This new family tradition is very dear to me because for one weekend I get to spend time with my favorite people and enjoy the comforts of home. This year we made bat pumpkins, visited Palo Duro Canyon, and hosted a Halloween party for my sister's three children and their Sunday school friends.
10/21/2008
Train
A little over a month ago I started riding the train to work. Actually it's more complicated than simply "riding the train" because I have to drive 9 miles, ride two trains, and walk 1.2 miles in order to get from home to work, which all in all takes about 2 hours from apartment door to office chair. But I don't mind; I actually really enjoy it. I certainly don't miss sitting in traffic and I like that I'm saving my car 200 miles a week, but mostly I just really like riding the train. In fact, I love it! I like hearing the ACE train blow its whistle when it arrives and departs the station. (Sometimes I hang around the parking lot just to hear the sound – seriously.) I like feeling the gentle movement of the train car, and I like glancing at the rural scenery as the train winds through Sunol. I like working on my laptop and knowing that when I get to the office I will have already achieved a full hour's worth of work (something that can't be done while sitting in traffic). I like sitting in the different train compartments (the bicycle car, the quiet dimly-lit car, the upper level, the lower level), and I like watching the people and recognizing the familiar faces. I like how the train roars in to the station with the powerful chugging and clanging sound but how it is completely quiet while it sits at the platform waiting for passengers to unload and load. I even like the cheerful colors of the train itself, which is painted purple, white, and blue. Maybe it's that my granddad was a railroad engineer or maybe it's that my parents have an album of train songs that we about wore a hole through listening to growing up, but for whatever reason I love trains. And as for riding the train to work, it doesn't save time and not really any money, but it has saved my sanity and well,...it's just nice.
09/24/2008
Autumn
Monday, September 22 marked the first day of Autumn, which is absolutely my favorite season. I love this time of year for many reasons. First of all, seasonal changes give me a sense of the passing of time. I like seeing, feeling, and smelling the changes of nature, of witnessing the ebb and flow of life. I like being reminded that there is a natural progression of things and that I need to embrace where I am along life's journey. I think for many, Autumn symbolizes the waning of life, but for me Autumn represents the verve of life. The changing of the leaves shows me that the trees are alive and in tune with the energy of the earth and that they have personality and brilliance. I also like Autumn because it houses special memories of my family. Since I was in Kindergarten, my extended family has had the tradition of getting together for a family reunion on Thanksgiving. For three days, forty-some-odd aunts, uncles, cousins, second-cousins, and in-laws come together to laugh, share stories, play games, jump in the leaves, eat, and talk nonstop. Although we each have different lifestyles and different life experiences, for three days we share the unconditional bond of "family." I have missed the past couple of reunions, but this year I am packing my bags and flying to Oklahoma to reunite myself with some of my favorite people and that feeling of love and acceptance. But aside from fond Thanksgiving memories, I love Autumn the most because it is beautiful. The warm days, the crisp nights, the bright blue sky, the breathtaking leaves... it's simply beautiful. And the sounds! One of my favorite sounds in the whole world is the sound of dry Autumn leaves blowing down the street on a brisk night when the Moon is bright and wispy clouds blow across the sky and you can see your breath and smell the smoke of someone's chimney in the neighborhood. Absolutely beautiful.
09/20/2008
Lava
In July, I had the opportunity to travel to the Big Island of Hawaii for my work. I spent a week in Hilo helping host a teacher workshop, but before that I added on some personal travel days and saw the Kailua Kona side of the island. This island is slow paced and not as lush as the older islands. I would describe it more as "interesting" than "romantic" and not your typical "island getaway" vacation spot. However, I did attend a good luau, saw some cool petroglyphs, and enjoyed a few hours on a sunny, sandy beach and in the wonderfully warm, clear ocean. But what I enjoyed the most was the lava! Volcano National Park was the highlight of my trip. I hiked down into the Kilauea Iki crater and explored numerous steam vents (very hot!); I walked through the well-lit Thurston lava tube and then followed a brave boy and his dad into an unlit lava tube (very dark!); and I saw first hand the A'a and Pahoehoe lava as well as Pele's Hair and some tree molds (so cool!). The Kilauea caldera is huge, and watching its new fumarole release a constant, giant plume of steam was awesome (you can see the red pulse of the vent after dark!). Yet the coolest moment of the trip was driving to the end of Highway 130 and walking half a mile by flashlight to view the lava flowing into the ocean. Even from a mile away, you could see the brilliant glow of the steam cloud and the spray of molten rock spewing upward. The warm night, the crescent Moon, the red glowing clouds, and the brilliant orange lava stream flowing down the mountainside was mesmerizing. It is so refreshing to be reminded how alive our planet is. Seeing forces of nature that are so much bigger than human life is both invigorating and humbling. It's nice to know that there is something greater than man's existence.
Highlights:
- Lava flow at night!
- Lava tube by flashlight
- Fumarole (steam vent) in Kilauea caldera (Volcano National Park)
- Lava formations in Volcano National Park (and friendly Ranger Dave)
- Steam vents and green goo in Kilauea Iki crater
- Petroglyphs
- Warm, clear ocean water and pretty sandy beach
- Dolphin pool, water slide, and hammocks at Hilton Waikoloa resort
- Kona Village luau
- 'Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii and planetary shows
- Polynesian canoe trip in Hilo Bay
- View of the stars and Moon at night
- SCUBA diving with Dive Makai (disappointing)
- No ocean waves (seasonal)
- No magnificent waterfalls (seasonal)
- No rain in Hilo (unusual)
Goal
My proudest accomplishment in 2008 was running the first half of the San Francisco marathon. What brought personal meaning to this event was not that I ran 13.1 miles but that for the first time in my life I set a goal and achieved it all by myself. For the first time, I had the discipline to stick to a schedule, to work through my fears, to do something 100% for me.
I've been a runner since I was twelve, but never have I been interested in running long-distance races. Then last November, my friend Leren from the Chicago area asked if I would run the SF half-marathon with her in August. I said "No." Six months later she asked again, and a new motivation came over me. I was ready to push myself and to be a part of something greater than me, so I said "Yes." Beginning in April, I embarked on a four-month training plan that was a journey in and of itself. I learned how to push myself to run faster so that I could run farther. I gained the discipline to cross-train when at the end of a long day all I wanted to do was veg. I experienced the pleasure of physically tired muscles after a ten-mile run, the feeling that I had pushed my body's limits. I could have found a group with whom to train, but in the end I think it was best for me to do this on my own, to realize that I alone had what it takes. That's not to say I didn't have support. My mom, who lives in Texas, was my biggest supporter, and I am thankful for her. She blessed me with homemade inspirational cards, regular motivational emails, and special meaningful gifts. She even increased her routine at the gym as a means of emotional support for me. (What a great mom!)
Race day came on August 3. I was prepared for the struggle of running the last three miles and for the even bigger challenge of waking up in the painful pre-dawn hours. What I wasn't prepared for was how much I would enjoy the race. It was amazing! 13,000 people participated in the two halves and the full marathon. The energy of the other runners and the enthusiasm of the spectators was invigorating. For the first two miles I ran in a sea of people, weaving in and out of the crowd searching for my own space in which to run. Although I had my ipod shuffle (determined that I would need my trusty music to survive the race), I never turned it on. Instead I tuned in to the sole sound of thousands of feet hitting the pavement along San Francisco's embarcadero. No sound of cars, horns, machinery, or general city hubbub...just the sound of feet. It was unreal. During miles 3, 4, and 5 I pulled myself out of runner mode and watched the world around me. I had never seen the areas of Fort Mason, Marina, and Crissy Field, so I soaked up the sights of Alcatraz and the stretch along the Bay. Miles 6–9 were spent crossing and re-crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, which was my favorite part of the race. This is where I really felt the energy of the other runners and where I truly felt like I was accomplishing my goal. The crowd was still thick, and I people-watched while I zigged and zagged around others in an effort to maintain my pace. The breeze was refreshing and cool, the bridge was gigantic and beautiful, and I was bopping along grinning from ear to ear at cameramen spread out along the span. It wasn't until miles 10 and 11 that the crowd opened up and thinned into small pockets of runners. Running through the Presidio was quiet and more of the environment that I'm used to. I enjoyed the dampness of the coastal air and the freshness of the evergreen trees. This section reminded me of the scene in the movie "What Women Want" where Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt's characters create a Nike ad featuring a girl running in the early morning along a deserted mountainous road... just the solidarity of the girl and the pavement. Miles 12 and 13 were uneventful and my least favorite. The energy of the race was waning and I was less familiar with that part of the city, which was mainly forgettable neighborhoods. However, there were still a few spectators cheering us on, and I will be forever grateful to the woman standing along the street encouraging runners by name. She didn't know me from Eve, but when she yelled "Way to go, Rebecca" I immediately regained the spring in my step. The end of the race was surprisingly anti-climatic. I had expected this to be the most rewarding moment–a moment when I lumbered across the finish line thinking "I finally made it." Instead the finish was simple and almost routine. I felt good but was glad to be done and was pleasantly satisfied with my time ( 2 hours, 5 minutes). The joy had existed in the race itself, not the finish. I had truly savored the journey.
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