Gathering and Hunting

It hit me on Monday.
I have to get away.
i.have.to.get.away.
I almost feel like a cornered rabbit
looking for a direction to dart.
I decided I would camp this weekend  …. alone again.
Tuesday, I noticed the brilliant full moon
hanging in the still, dark sky.
I could feel the relief
just.in.having.begun.to.make.plans.
I could picture leaves of gold and mahogany
floating weightlessly on dark, glass water.
I knew I needed to go.

And then I began to realize that it was exactly one year ago
that I first camped alone.
In fact, it was October ….
the same week
when the moon hung full in the sky
bright against the dark night.
I felt this same entrapment
and need to escape
then.

Surely, it is a seasonal thing …
this agitation …
but, I will settle down quickly.
It is a simple, seasonal adjustment.
We people … are built for seasons and cycles
the returning to the same
and doing the repetitive
like the planets, plants, and animals around us
riding round and round within this galaxy, encircling that fiery orb of gas.

Today begins the fifth day of steady, soft rain falling on my world.
Time and again I see people commenting on Facebook
that they need a nap by mid-day.
They are having trouble getting out of bed in the morn.
They are struggling to make themselves exercise.
I remind them that it is seasonal … we’re slowing down to hibernation-mode.
And they balk at me and give me reasons that I am incorrect.
But, it’s everywhere!
How do we deny
the obvious
so easily?
Why can we not admit that it is natural, normal, expected
and good.
*rest*

After readying to camp,
I was invited by The Sweet Nightingale   to join her for a hike across mountains.
I am so thrilled. Her conversation is intentional, diverse and colorful
like a palette smeared with wet autumn pigment.
We will talk of God and His movement in our lives.
I know … we will cover marriage, relationships and husbandry …
pain, healing and release.
I will take a Bible … or at the least, download a version to my iPhone.
I know … some exciting something will come up
and I will want a verse reference.
God.is.good that way.
It will not be camping alone to escape and renew …
it will be better, richer, deeper …
she and I and Him.

I talk to her with excitement in my voice
telling her that I feel on the edge of my seat.
It is time to gather.
I will take my cameras in my backpack.
I easily bear the weight of big and small,
with added water and a few snacks ..
because I know that the weight is necessary to collect the treasures
for the next year.
I will come home with a pocket full of rocks,
pixelated memories
leaves tucked away safe,
and memories of sweet fellowship and opulent conversation.
Autumn comes but once a year
with its brilliance, depth and strength.
Like Frederick the field mouse, I will collect images
to carry me through the next three hundred sixty-five and a quarter days.
I think I will take my book along to read to Sarah
and we will hunt and gather in fellowship.