I Am A Pisces - Finding My Water Legs

I like that my astrological sign is the Pisces.  Here is what Google tells me about it: Pisces is a Water sign and as such this zodiac sign is characterized by empathy and expressed emotional capacity. Their ruling planet is Neptune, so Pisces are more intuitive than others and have an artistic talent.  

Who wouldn’t want to be empathetic, intuitive and have emotional capacity and artistic talent.  However, Pisces is a Water sign and I have never liked to be in the water.  Oh, I love being NEAR the water, watching waves beat against the rocks or the sun sinking into the blue Pacific.  I love that I live near the water.  But I have never liked to be IN the water.

Maybe it’s due to a “traumatic experience” I had as a child, when a swim instructor stepped on my little 7 year old hands hanging on for dear life to the edge of the Kent State University swimming pool, emotionally scarring me for life! 

Or maybe it’s due to stepping off a drop in the water near the pier at Brady Lake and thrashing and sputtering as someone lifted me up by my 10 year old arm and asked if I was OK. OK?  I was drowning!!  

Or maybe it’s due to having severe myopia and having everything look like a blur when I was in the water without my glasses.  

Or maybe I am just not an authentic Pisces.  

Whatever the reason, I am always the one sitting on the poolside lounge, not the one frolicking in the water.

So I looked askance when Jay suggested that we try the Water Aerobics class offered at our community pool three mornings a week.  We wanted to incorporate more exercise into our daily routine, other residents raved about it, and it was practically right outside our door. 

We went one morning as “observers” and saw that everyone wore a flotation belt so there was no need to even be able to tread water.  Everyone had smiles on their faces so they were obviously enjoying it.  The weather was so hot and the pool did look inviting.  The instructor offered us her extra equipment to try it and see if we liked it before investing in it.

So, the next class we were at the poolside at 8:20 am, in swim suits, robes and flip-flops.  

Heading for the pool...

We put on the flotation belts and prepared join the others.  

The water was heated so it was an easy entry.  There was a buoyant sense of freedom as our belts held us upright.  We were told it might feel awkward at first but that we would develop our water legs.  For one hour Susan put us through a series of exercises that included stretches to all muscle groups, aerobic big legs and big arms moving in laps around and around and around the pool, stomach crunches, leg kicks and resistance work on the arms using flotation dumbbells.  I especially liked the exercise where I looked like Esther Williams doing side stretches while hanging on to my dumbbells.  

It was quite a workout and I didn’t even have to sweat!

We have been participating in the classes for a couple weeks now.  We have our own flotation equipment and each time as we head home after the hour class we rejoice in the achy muscles and feel quite proud of ourselves.  

The best part is that Susan says I am doing very well, that I am a natural.  It must be because I am a Pisces!

I Am A Naturalist - Experiencing Nature at PVS

Most of my family and friends know that Jay and I live in Palos Verdes Shores, a community of residents, 55 years or older, who live in manufactured homes on the bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula.  

Nestled between the town of San Pedro and the Trump Golf course, our little piece of paradise provides us with expansive views of the Pacific Ocean, Catalina Island, 

the Port of Los Angeles, tanker ships, fishing boats, and an occasional whale or dolphin. We enjoy daily ocean breezes, mornings with marine layers, 

hummingbirds visiting our deck feeders, monarch butterflies visiting our milkweed plants, 

the evening serenades of local coyotes and once in a while an uninvited raccoon trying to get into the trash bins.  

While we have the moving parking lot of the 405 freeway just a few miles away, it is easy to forget the hustle of the city and submerge ourselves into the natural world that surrounds us.  Separating us from the Trump Golf course is the Ocean Trails section of the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve, areas of the peninsula that are protected by the Land Conservancy from development and provides hiking trails while preserving the natural setting.  After our wonderful rains, the Preserve was lush and green and later, filled with golden flowers of the wild mustard plants.  

But like all living things (ourselves included!), these plants age, and dry, and wither away…creating a disaster like a brush fire just waiting to happen.

But the city of Palos Verdes is on the ball and as well as employing various persons to comb the hillsides with weed-whackers, each year they also bring in goats to eat the invasive plants.  The Conservancy says goat grazing is considered environmentally friendly and economically efficient.

So, today Jay and I decide to take a walk over to the trail head and looked down on the busy baa-ing goats.  On our way we passed this sign that reminded us that there are other living creatures that also share our surroundings!

Except for the goats and one other man ahead of us on the trail, we felt like we were alone in this magical place.  

To the left were the rooftops of our community homes, and before us was hillside filled with goats.  

Some were chomping away, some were fighting over who was going to stand on top of the big rocks, 

and some were just resting while they digested!  

Later we walked over to the tall trees adjacent to our golf course to check out the red-tailed hawk nest and see if we could get a glimpse of mama hawk and her one little “hawklet!” 

Jay and I look at each other and say…”We live in paradise! 

Being surrounded by the beauty and the peacefulness of nature is restorative.  It gives us a chance to remove ourselves from the "noise" and be reminded of the essence of life.  All we have to do is turn on the television or pick up the newspaper and we realize that we don’t recognize our world anymore.  The “new normal” is frightening to us.  We feel assaulted by dissent, anger, disrespect, chest-thumping.  We don’t know what to believe or who to trust. We don’t understand our modern world and the urge is strong to assume the fetal position, to withdraw and hide.  But what we find ourselves doing instead is reaching for those behaviors that are constant and remind us of who we are at our core.  

We are currently taking an Omnilore course that is studying the ancient philosophies of China and we are reminded of mindfulness and all the wonderful tools that help us practice warm-heartedness, presence and goodness and that contribute positively to our well-being and our surroundings.  Being aware of nature that surrounds us contributes to that little bit of serenity.  

As Confucius say..."Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."  I think I'll go take a walk!

I Am A Day-Tripper – An Afternoon in Malaga Cove

Jay and I enjoy our little home in PV Shores so much that we can easily stay within the park for days at a time.  So, yesterday with a shining sun, a beautiful ocean and a gentle breeze, I convinced Jay we needed to go on an outing to Malaga Cove!  As we drove along the coast, the streams of people hiking along the trails were a testament to the Palos Verdes Peninsula scenic beauty. 

I have been attending a weekly gathering of artists and heard of the Summer Art Show at Malaga Cove. My plan was to go, to look and to learn from the art of others.   

I was excited to find my new friend, artist Georgeann, displaying many of her wonderful works.   

Jay was not as excited as I, so I released him to go find a cup of coffee and a breakfast sandwich while I continued to browse.

On our way back to the car, we spotted a sign and Jay’s breathing began to quicken. A Book Sale at the Malaga Cove Library!  

 So we browsed and he bought.

 

On the way home we stopped by La Venta Inn for a moment of silent pause as we remembered our wonderful wedding here 16 years ago. (sigh)

 

We both returned home quite satisfied with our outing.

TOPIC SHIFT!

I have just finished reading the book, Being Mortal by Atul Gawande.  

It was not a fun read, to be reminded of my ultimate mortality and the reality of aging.  But interestingly enough, I was so glad I read it and was left with a sense of optimism, increased understanding and acceptance.  

One quote that resonated with me was “how we seek to spend our time may depend on how much time we perceive ourselves to have.”  When was young and in my prime, I felt like I would live forever.  There was plenty of time to do all the things I wanted to do.  But now, while I still enjoy an active life, I am aware of my horizon.  As I attend funeral services for my peers, I hear the bell tolling.  While I truly hope I have many more years to enjoy life, I am aware that my future is finite and it is uncertain.  Life can change in an instant.  

There is good news in this!  My perspective is shifting; my focus and values are realigning.   

I cannot waste precious time being upset, carrying a grudge, nursing a perceived slight.  

I cannot waste precious time proving that I am right about every little opinion.   

I am learning that “no” is a complete sentence and I do not have to DO everything.   

I give myself time to just BE rather than Do.  

I find I am choosing differently…focusing on the here and now, to everyday pleasures, doing things that I enjoy and being with people who fill my soul, my family and friends, the people closest to me.

Everytime I write a blog post, I am amazed at how it writes itself and where it takes me.  This was to be a post about a short outing and it ends up being a philosophical blurb about life.  In the end, it doesn’t even matter if I actually post it.  Just writing it has been a gift to me.

Now, I think I will pick up my paintbrush and see if I can add to that view of Catalina Island from my deck!

I Am A NOW Person – Life at a “Certain Age”

Life is a little different in a 55+ residential community.  We have lived at Palos Verdes Shores for almost a year and a half and we love it.  It is quieter, safer, slower…and it all feels good.  When we pull into the PV Shores Community, we wave to the guard at the gate and sigh… “HOME…We love living here!”  

Just down from the gate is our Message Board, which reminds us of the date (in case we forgot!), the time, the temperature and any notices about upcoming events.  It is like a welcome home.  One day I noticed a person’s name listed on the board. I assumed it was welcoming a new resident and when I remarked to a neighbor that I had never noticed that before and I wondered why our name was not put up when we moved in her response was… “You don’t want your name on the message board!  It is the park’s way of acknowledging the death of one of the residents."

In living at our paradise by the sea that is perfect for our golden years, where we have constant reminders of the beauty and richness of life, we are also reminded that it is fleeting and fragile.  We will not be here forever so we should gather our rosebuds while we may.  Some may find this depressing but for us, it seems to have the opposite effect.  It gives us a deep sense of gratitude for what we have NOW, for the health we experience NOW, for the people in our life we love and enjoy NOW and we take each day as it comes, more willing to just experience the moment and not worry too much about what may come. 

Yes, there are moments of regret, moments of frustration, moments of anger.  I wonder “How did time pass so quickly!”  There are times of nostalgia when wish I could have just a few more moments with my children as little ones, that I could have just one more conversation with my mom or dad.  But they are few and far between.  Lately I seem reluctant to waste precious minutes and energy in holding on to grudges, being annoyed.   

The gift for me of life at a "certain age" is a sense of freedom…liberation.  Why does it take so long to learn that you can put down that rock you are carrying…that is weighing you down.  It is not that important in the grand scheme of things.

I am not being morbid.  I plan to be around for quite a while yet.  What are the odds?  My mother died at 95 years of age and I look like her so maybe I have her genes as well!  But I hope I can use these years wisely and squeeze every bit of “life” out of them, remembering that life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.   

“Look….there is a whale’s spout!”

I Am A Walker - Right In My Own Backyard

After spending a week in Barcelona where we walked an average of 6 miles a day, I came home determined to maintain my new physical endurance by walking every day I could.  With my pedometer on my waist, I set out first thing in the morning so I won’t get waylaid by the computer, the newspaper, my knitting…first things first!

Over the week I have renewed my love and appreciation for where I live.  It is a little piece of paradise and it is right in my own backyard!  I set off down the hill from my house, with my eyes on the ocean ahead of me.  

I have discovered that there is a multitude of morning activities in our park that I have never noticed before.  I walk past the dog park and see the pet owners taking their furry friends for their morning walk.  

 I walk past the community gardens, check on my veggies and often see a gardener watering early to avoid the heat. 

I continue along the path along the Paseo Del Mar walking trail, looking out at the water, the fishing boats already out, the surfers, the seagulls on the water.  

At the end of our community park path there is a padlocked gate that lets me out onto the public path in the Nature Preserve that separates our community from the Trump Golf Course.

I pass by the recently  created watershed with its newly planted native ground cover.

 I share the trail with others, people who may have traveled from all parts of the South Bay to walk these beautiful paths.   

Most of them respect the beauty of our little piece of the earth, but some come for other reasons and leave their traces behind them.  

 I guess that is also why these signs are posted periodically along the path as it hugs the top of the cliffs. 

Eventually, I stop at the little rest area and check my pedometer…almost one mile from my front door.  

I sit and gaze out at the ocean for a while, feel the constant breeze on my face, hear the sounds of the gulls and the surf.  I have to actually force myself to stand up and head back, leaving this little pause in the pace of life.

So I have invested about 1 hour of my life in this activity.  I have walked 2 miles.  I have communed with nature.  I have chatted with some early morning neighbors.  I have started my day right in my own backyard!