"My tools may not suit others.
My lessons may be different.
But here is the secret: the simple act of reaching out and holding a broken heart with care and love is the most powerful help and comfort anyone can ever offer.
And that is something every single one of us can do. "
Dr. Nancy Saltzman
‘Radical Survivor’

“Freedom on Both Ends of the Leash” is now available autographed through us for $24.99 [$19.99 + $5 S&H, Continental 48 States] by clicking the above photo links. [PayPal accepting all cards]. It is also available through Amazon in paperback or as a Kindle download. All other electronic formats are also available.
You can also order from any Bookstore.  
The flat shipping rate for outside the 48 States or International is $15. Please e-mail me [link above] for those orders as you will have to get into directly our PayPal account bypassing the normal procedure.
If ordering more than one copy through us you will need to place each order separately.
Thank You.

I am a bit dumbfounded being here on the shores of Lake San Cristobal as we were a few years past, I don’t remember when. I feel as it is the first breath I am taking since that day when nine months ago words of our book filled the first page and this time around , as I had started it a few times, it did come to an end. Not the end of our journey, just a last page seemingly proper at the time for the rear cover to fold and close.

When someone asks me what I write ‘here’, my answer is truly ‘the now’. It could be about the space we are in, what is on my mind, maybe some thoughts about an interesting book I might be reading, someone we have met on their own journey, my Mother and my Son who both live within me, Spirit, cooking, the logistics and dynamics of the road. Quite often the photos have nothing to do with the context, all is about sharing Life itself as always, as we have done for these past years. I don’t even know right now at this very moment what the next paragraph will be about. They are more than ever conversations with myself, something I have even done in my youth, those past pages unfortunately I understand burned away by my father when he put me on that one way plane to Philadelphia in my late twenties. A good thing actually or I would have not been here and enjoyed the 26 wonderful years my Son gave me with his presence.

The book has been different. I read a comment the other day of a reader ‘kind of surprised’ it was not sad. There is no true reason for a book to be sad. Some of these pages here have been as these are more intimate moments day in and day out when sometimes the choice of grabbing life’s horns just slips away. I always know eventually, and most likely because of writing about it and the choices of paths taken, the hold will again become strong throughout these winds of times.

I think it might be the reason our book waited seven years to be written. The acceptance of my present reality needed to surface from those past murky waters. Faith also brought on our path the best editor there could ever been. As humble as she is, the pages would have not and could have not been what reads today. It was a precarious balance. I always had the final say so but plied to her wisdom and knowledge of the language more times than one. Many times. I actually miss the dynamics which kept us together day in and day out never missing a beat especially when she did not budge from what is right and my last word meaning an agreement as in "Ok… Ok…". We did have fun.

So this afternoon, breathing was easy on the shores of this beautiful Lake. Sitting near by the edge on my left the rugged granite protruding from the base line of the pine trees howling from the wind. Ahead, a water of all colors of greens and a bit further in contrast some rolling hills preparing to accept the slow descent of a Sun, a master of the sights with no needs for a rehearsal. I felt this invisible connection with Nature once again pulling me in while I surrender with no hardship.

There is nothing else to do now again but ride, photograph, shoot some videos, cook a bit more and share the path we are on. More time spent with Spirit, he knows it and shows it. Somehow in some ways also let our friends know about the completion and the availability of our book. We shall warm up Old Faithful this morning after a long walk with my buddy and once more dig in the roads surrounding us. Life as it use to be with no definition of what is normal or not.

Maybe because we have been so busy, there is also a laziness which has descended on me! I found myself not even cooking last night and sitting while reading letting my surroundings get under my skin. I didn’t ask for energy. I was content just being and letting this world spin around us.

Stay well, Ara and Spirit

This entry was posted on Sunday, June 29th, 2014 at 8:50 am and is filed under travel, spirituality, pit bull, sidecar, motorcycle, cooking, photography, riding, homeless. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.