When I lived in Oakland, California I used to make a conscious effort to connect to the part of the world on which I was living.  It was pretty paved over and who knew if those weeds under the overpass were indigenous or not.  The estuary was right across the freeway from my loft, but it was pretty industrialized, too.  I used to make a point to remember the ground, the water, the sky all used to be wild and natural and we were living on a piece of the earth.  Now I live in Fort Bragg, California and am ashamed to say I now have to make a conscious effort to pay attention to the beautiful, wild and natural setting I’m in today.  The trees, the flowers, the powerful Pacific is all right there and sometimes I don’t even notice till bedtime when I take a moment to review what’s right with my life.  Oh well – being conscious and appreciative and careful with the gifts we’ve been given is a full time job and I’ve already got one of those.

Wild Mendocino was appreciated by my daughter and lots of Living Light employees this past Sunday as our directors, Dan and Cherie, sponsored a mushroom lecture and hunt.  The event was led by Ryan Snow, mushroom expert, who gave the talk and then led our intrepid seekers through the woods.  My daughter went with my roommate (who also happens to be Living Light’s Student Services Manager) and they came back with tons of mushrooms and knowledge.  And the fresh faced flush of a day out in the wild part of the world.  My son and I spent the time shopping for valentines and playing air hockey, in case you were wondering.  We came home all flushed with competition and consumerism and ready to eat the spoils of the hunt.  Modern life doesn’t always mix with connection to one’s surroundings, but it sure tastes good to try.