TheBanyanTree: Contentment

[Pat M]

It has been months since I’ve lingered in the Banyan Tree’s branches and
I’ve been silent when I’ve rested here. I’ve gone from homeless world
traveler to home owner, and I sit in my front room now looking out on the
shimmering Pacific Ocean, a blue cloudless sky and the majestic snow-capped
mountains of Vancouver Island.

A pair of bald-headed eagles has taken up residence on the upper branches of
an ancient fir tree that hugs the shore just a half block away. Seeing
eagles is common-place here in Powell River, but until today, I’d never seen
them mate.

I have a young Brazilian man of 23 living in my home and studying English
with me, and just yesterday the eagles arrested his lesson. Cawing and
screeching shattered the silence, their lure more compelling than the
Business English text in front of us. Outside, we saw crows and gulls
trying, unsuccessfully, to drive away the two huge white-headed predators in
search of a meal just outside my dining room window. When we looked next,
one of the eagles perched on a nearby tree with something dangling from its
beak.  Ignoring the smaller dive-bombing birds, it ripped its prey to pieces
and leisurely devoured it while its mate returned to the tall fir tree that
the pair has claimed as their home.

              Soon, I told my student, soon, the pair will build a nest and
later we’ll be able to watch the young eaglets learn to fly. How amazing is
that?

I love my home.  It’s old but charming with well-worn hardwood floors,
arched doorways and lots of windows. I don’t know which room I like
better—my living room or my dining room.

              My dining room is a many-windowed alcove that looks out onto a
private back yard where the branches of a grandfather cherry tree form a
canopy over a small wooden deck. The tree’s branches are blossoming now but
when fully clothed, the deck will become a refuge, a secret hideaway to
escape the summer heat. There are raised beds of raspberry canes,
strawberries, rhubarb and numerous shrubs, herbs and flowers, many, as yet,
unidentified. I’m anxious and excited about finding out what is growing in
my yard, but I will have to wait.

The interior of my home is also a jungle of plants, a jungle I have chosen
that includes two flowering azaleas—one muted pink and the other a vivid
fuchsia, and a still-blooming red poinsettia. I love flowers.

My best ocean views are through my living room windows.  The view isn’t
perfect, I can’t afford such a property, but it’s a nice view. I’ve
decorated the living room in soft neutral colors, mostly shades of cream and
beige, which complement the solid oak furniture. A lamb skin lies in front
of the fireplace.  One of my creations, a pretty afghan of soft green and
off-white granny squares covers an easy chair.

             When I look around my home, I feel content; I have created a
space that suits me. The greenery inside and outside brings me peace; it
calms me. My home is a welcoming place filled with warmth and love.

I’m happy to stay in Canada for now—just as well, because I must. The $5000
I spent on laser eye surgery last year was wasted. For a month, I had
perfect vision and then my vision began to deteriorate. Supposedly I now
have rapidly-growing cataracts, and I may need an operation later this year.
I’m wearing glasses again and my vision continues to worsen. I don’t dwell
on it; there’s no sense as it is out of my control, but it leaves me
wondering why. Perhaps… perhaps it was so I would claim my own resting place
and build my own nest, like the eagles outside my window.


-- 
Live life to the fullest!

Pat