Meteorites and magic on Monhegan Island

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It has been some time since I connected with you.

I was planning to send a video of the art exhibit at Lifeworks, but time got away from me and soon I was in our Honda Insight, with my husband and two sons, on our way to Monhegan Island.

We went for a week and ended up being there for almost two.

I knew from my first week there that what really excited me was scrambling on the cliffs on the west side of the island. My body was not strong enough that first week, and it warned me that it was not quite ready for the adventures I dreamed of. But by the time I returned the second week (after a few days at home to manage the fallout from a tropical storm) my body was prepared.

My first foray was to White Head. I felt called strongly to the ocean. On that side of the island there is nothing between you and Europe and the cliffs drop steeply to the ocean and below, so extreme caution is necessary. I took my time. I checked in every step of the way with my body. How was it feeling physically, how was it feeling on a gut level…was I safe? I got to the water, sitting on the seaweed and dangling my bare feet in the ocean. I took a more adventurous route up the cliff face. After climbing almost to the top, I looked back and saw a tide pool deep and long enough to float in. I could feel my body say a big YES…so I planned a route down to the pool, leaving my backpack behind as a guide to follow on my way back. The pool was fairly close to the open ocean, so it had the feeling of an infinity pool. I gently picked my way over seaweed and barnacles, pushing off and floating in the soothing water. Even though the pool was shallow I felt a familiar fear of the unknown. Was I safe? Should I just get in and get back out? I took a few deep breaths and remained floating, feeling exhilarated and empowered. When I was done, I decided to try a more challenging route up. I was barefoot, and the rocks were pocked and pitted making for easy grip. I reached a point and knew that if I went any further I would lose my footing and slide painfully back down. I retraced my path back to the tide pool and up the original route to my backpack.

This adventure was the first of many, as I filled my days with barefoot walks along trails, catching songs on the wind, and navigating exciting and challenging terrain to bring my body to the water. I called these adventures off-grid swimming, and I felt again, like at Emerald Pool, the gift that moving water is to my body and spirit. Every step I took, I was present in the moment and completely conscious of my body. I expressed endless gratitude to it for taking me on these adventures. These exceptional experiences, alone in nature, challenging myself in new ways, nourished my body and soothed my soul in ways I never, ever imagined possible.

But it was not just the days that were packed with wonder. Evenings in my tent under a perfect sky charged me up in a totally different way. The energy of the earth and the vibrating light of the stars and milky way were electrifying and healing. One especially exciting night I lay on the grass under the sky until two in the morning thrilling as the universe sent shooting stars across the path of my gaze. I felt blanketed by the sky, and wondered at being held on a beautiful planet in the midst of a vast and stunning universe.