Life is such a Thin Ribbon

It was a soft fall evening when I arrived at West Clear Water Creek. The air was sweet with fragrance and the sun was still high enough to warm the back of my legs and bike. Sycamore leaves fell and drifted randomly as the flickers called out their heckled laughter and "swam" from tree to tree. All of life seemed touched by an energy which charged everything, including me.

I had a lot of time to think while I biked along a worn path, and most of my thoughts centered around my being too strong and independent for a certain someone. I could hear his voice still in my head, but I began to replace his words with a new kind of language, a kiss which didn't have anything to do with the cellular movement of these thoughts, but of someone else's. It was kinda weird. I felt a rage and so I tossed my bike down on the sand and released my energy in doing so. With this new language, a remembrance of things past flooded over me and I floated off to another time and another place. I discovered absolute freedom thinking myself out of my current existence and this shook me from my loneliness.

We over-analyze it and forget to reflect on love and the sacredness of life. Even when it's as thin as a ribbon, so fragile, but so easily transformed. I thought life is sacred even:
--in the middle of nowhere
--in lands that are ravaged
--in a homeless shelter
--in line at the bank (you're overdrawn at)
--in the darkness of our souls
--when you have one stupid cover pulled over your head.

And now at the level of my bike, the unforgiving pokes of the stones, withered leaves and decaying wood bits, I ironically guard the new fruit of a kiss, a kiss which is unfelt. I guard it so wrongly, the new love which needs no explanation. And when the time is right, I will bike out across the flattened creek path and through some sandy areas and burst open to feel that kiss and let kisses come in that are of love and beauty. They can be from this time, that time, or any other time; it's all the same.

Hope you have a sweet, thought-provoking Fall.. xo, Sharon Marzonie

Creative Travel

Today I sit here in Prescott scratching my head in amazement at the turn of events. This year will be one of road trips and festivals (yes, I know even with the price of gas) instead of international travel. Believe me, if I get offered a chance to squeeze in some passport time, I will.

My first festival of 2011 I traveled to this past weekend in Apache Junction: the Arizona Renaissance Festival. It was a fun side priority to put my costume together for it. Some people feel it is essential that you develop a persona too (lords and ladies, maybe next year I will). A few weeks before I scouted my local thrift shops looking for the perfect, affordable dress and/or accessories. I never did find any tall lace up boots or corsets. So for simplicity's sake and because I'm not one to surround myself with a lot of drama, I wore a faux velvet smock, black hippy skirt (which I got during my travels in Thailand) and gladiator-style sandals made by Dansko. All of my jewelry I made myself.Travel, even a short road trip, is a phenomenal vehicle for personal transformation and another way of meeting interesting people. I know from experience I don't have to travel all the way around the world to reap the benefits or the fun. I've also learned to try and not plan too much ahead that way making room for changes along the way. It's so much more "organic." I let one event (at the festival) lead me to the next, and I didn't really have to think about it. Many of the interesting people I met working at the festival move from one to the next all around the US. They seem to have "organic travel" down pack and enjoy being nomadic.

Thanks for reading as I make sense of and embrace many more trips like this ahead, which really has my wheels spinning. This year I will downsize my "stuff" and learn more about sustainable living in case I ever take to the open road for a long stretch of time. Goodbye for now, you lovely gypsies! ~Sharon Marzonie

Camping over Christmas

This past few days were magical in the most lovely and simple way. There wasn't anything fancy and there was less (monetarily) but in a good kind of less-is-more spirit. I think anyone can see from the looks of the pics, that we needed so very little to bring us to great joy and fulfillment. Keeping things simple and personal, we recreated the familiar experience we so love of camping into a sweet and special Christmas.

These pics were taken in and around the Rawhide Mountains in Arizona.

Our first real winter weather is predicted to blow into town tomorrow, so I need to stock up with more simple items of merriment before we're bombarded with snow. Happy New Year! ~Sharon Marzonie

Overlanding the Old Railroad

Today was just plain-gorgeous, sunny fall weather, and I had a mission in mind. I've had itchy feet and wanted to explore more of the Peavine Railroad trails in Chino Valley, Az. While the trains through Prescott (namely the SF P&P section) are no more and the railroad ties and rails have been removed, some of the ground work is still there. It is this process that we go through when we are trying to create the road of our lives. Here are some pictures from my journey:
Enjoy, and have a lovely rest of your October ~Sharon Marzonie