Metaphorically speaking, a person who takes “the road less traveled” is someone who acts independently. They’re free from conforming to others (who choose to take “the road more often traveled”).
I took this photo at the Deer Flat Wildlife Refuge Center near Lake Lowell in Nampa, Idaho.
This person generally makes their own choices and perhaps leaves a new trail that will become the road more often traveled (until, of course, someone takes the road less traveled).
There’s not another person in the entire world who’s exactly like you.
Law enforcement agencies and certain governmental departments use FINGERPRINTS to identify people. That’s because no two people in the world have the same prints.
Scientists in Japan have discovered that our LIPS are distinctive too. Just like fingerprints, lips have little markings on them, tiny grooves in the skin, and each person has a different pattern.
No two people have the same SMELL. Police and other tracking dogs can follow a person’s scent—without getting mixed up—just by the smell (scent trail) a person leaves behind.
EYES, too, are used for identification. Just like fingerprints, every eye in the world is different.
Our TEETH are different as well. That’s why our dental records can be used for identification.
My favorite thing about me? My earlobes. Definitely my earlobes!
I love to travel, and when I do, I enjoy photographing the variety of doors I happen upon. A door is like a book—you don’t know what lies within until you open it. Something pleasant? Something scary? An adventure? Something that lulls you to sleep?
Left—Nova Scotia. Upper right—the Highlands of Scotland. Bottom right—Quebec.
Remember the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves? All Baba used the magical phrase — Open Sesame — to open the mouth of a cave in which forty thieves had hidden a treasure.
Santorini, Greece
And while there have been times I’ve not felt welcome, I’ve never had a door not open to me—regardless of my age, gender, skin color, politics, or spiritual tradition. I’m aware that’s sadly not the case for everyone.
I know a few people who appear to have jagged edges. They’re grouchy. Curmudgeonly. On occasion, I’ve even heard them “bark” — snap at others. Myself included.
When I get “hangry” (irritable or angry as a result of hunger), I get peevish. Once the hunger beast is satisfied, I bounce right back to my merry self.
Let me be the first to say that while that might explain it, it doesn’t excuse it. Barking at others isn’t acceptable — even if the bark is worse than the bite.
Feng Shui is the art of harmonious living. It involves the intentional placement of items to direct the circulation and flow of energy in a space. The desired outcome is unique by individual. For instance, some people want to create balance and harmony, while others wish to boost their productivity, attract wealth, heighten creativity, advance their career, enhance good luck, and so on.
According to Feng Shui principles, the broom symbolizes insight and wisdom and is believed to have the power to sweep away negative energy, worry, and trouble. This ancient Chinese art counsels that the broom be hung by the door, symbolically sweeping out energy that no longer serves us well, making room for positive energy, abundance, and prosperity.
At our home, we use our brooms daily; they aren’t just for looks. They also serve as a visible reminder of our intent to maintain a positive, respectful, and healthy emotional environment in our space.
Our road trips in the Pacific Northwest often take us through the boondocks. It’s important to note that the boondocks aren’t unique to our neck of the woods; they’re just about everywhere.
According to the dictionary, “The Boondocks is an American expression from the Tagalog word bundók. It originally referred to a remote rural area, but now, is often applied to an out-of-the-way area.”
We knew we were in the boondocks during a recent stop at a rest area. When I went to dry my hands, this is what I saw:
I pressed the button and got nothing. Zip. Zilch. Nada. I smacked the button and voilà! Hot air.
Many of you know that I’m an advocate for fair trade. As such, on the weekends when I’m not traveling, I invest my time at Dunia Marketplace in the Hyde Park historic district of Boise. It’s a charming, nonprofit store that carries handcrafted items from fair trade artisans around the globe.
FAIR TRADE is about ensuring good wages and safe conditions for artisans. Equally important, it’s about practicing responsibility. Sometimes referred to as “360-degree fair trade,” it’s also about building more in-depth, longer-term partnerships that empower artisans to grow their businesses and strengthen their communities.
Last week I traveled to Filer, Idaho, to help with Dunia’s annual, fair trade INTERNATIONAL GIFT SALE at the Filer Mennonite Church. All of the proceeds from this huge event are used to support fair trade artisans around the globe.
While helping with the event, I was hosted by a church family — Shirley and Gary Eichelberger — who went way above and beyond to make me feel welcome.
On our drive across and back Washington state for a speaking engagement at Write on the Sound, in Edmonds, WA, we passed zillions of hop yards, apple orchards, bing cherry orchards, and vineyards.
We also passed wind turbine farms, galore!
At one point, we had the opportunity to get an up-close-and-personal look at one of these giants and learned that:
Each individual, joint-free, seamless blade is 148 feet long, 11.2 feet wide, and weighs 23,098 pounds!
Standing over 400 feet tall, each complete wind turbine has three blades, with a rotor diameter of more than 300 feet — nearly the same length as a football field.
One wind turbine can power up to 700 residential homes with environmentally friendly, carbon-free electricity.
A single wind turbine needs approximately one-half acre of land and uses 40 acres of wind space.
Blades sweep an area of 75,000 square feet with each rotation.
I live a somewhat Dr. Doolittle life. It seems that no matter where I go, I encounter all types of critters doing interesting things. The most recent example occurred just before the trip we’re currently on.
No sooner had I stepped into the driveway, then two geese landed on the pitch of the garage.
Immediately followed by two more geese landing on the pitch of the house next door.
This two-roofed-goose-incident immediately brought to mind the phrase, “As above, so below.” I have to admit that a quick bit of research was necessary. It revealed:
“As above, so below” is a phrase used most appropriately to discuss the principle of correspondence. This principle embodies the truth that there always exists a correspondence between laws and phenomena on every plane of existence.”
Most recently, my law and corresponding phenomena have been:
Law—Laurie goes outside
Corresponding Phenomena—A rooster in a tree crows at me, ducks line up in a row, and now geese act out the “As above” part of an old adage.
I’m currently traveling home from a speaking engagement at the Write on the Sound writing conference in Edmonds, WA, so I’ve turned comments off for this post. But if I were available to interact, this week’s internal inventory question would be:
We’re fortunate to live within a stone’s throw of the Morrison Knudsen Nature Center. We walk through their peaceful grounds at least once a week. This week I photographed a few ducks lined up on a tree branch in the water. I love the way it turned out. To me it looks like a watercolor painting.
When researching the saying, “Ducks in a row,” I learned something new. I learned that it comes from from ship building. Who knew?!
It turns out that a “duck” is a device that holds the keel in place while building a ship. The first step in building a ship is to get the ducks in straight row thus ensuring a straight keel.
Conversationally speaking, getting one’s ducks in a row means to ensure that all of the small details or elements are accounted for and in their proper positions before embarking on a new project.
