Fog

It's been really foggy here lately. Unusually so. I don't remember fog like this ever before, for such a prolonged period. And it's been coming in really fast. I have even heard the foghorn in Steveston blowing a few times in the past week. It's kind of a nice sound.

I think fog is a good thing.


One afternoon last week I was walking on the dyke with a friend and took this picture. Usually you can see the ocean and mountains in the distance. This section of the dyke is where some cows from an adjacent farm pasture. Sometimes when you're walking you have to stop to let the farmer lead the cows to the other side. It's totally old-school Richmond - living off the land naturally.

So, I'm supposed to be studying for my RN exam which is coming up quickly on wednesday. It's an 8 hour exam which covers everything I've learned in the past 4 years. Kind of a hard thing to study for eh? And I can't imagine failing - it would be very embarrasing and a total waste of time and money. I'm just going to do it, and trust that everything will all work out. It always does doesn't it. I'll be very glad when it's over and I can enjoy moving on. Starting a new job has been stressful, and with this exam looming over my head it's been an even more unenjoyable time. I often find myself thinking about how I'd like my life to be. Daydreaming of all the things I'm going to do when I'm free from school once and for all...being able to focus on work when I'm there, and focus on my own life when I'm not.

It's kind of ironic how fog forces you to look at only what immediately surrounds you. I have the image in my mind of walking on a path and looking at something up infront of me where I'd really rather be. But I realize that I've stopped walking and can't go on, because there's a huge log at my feet that I have to deal with. I could stay there forever, focusing on the distance, groaning and complaining and stomping my feet because I don't have what I want, but if I'd just do what needs to be done, if I'd just bend down and move the log, I'll be able to move on a whole lot faster. Why commit ourselves to suffering by wanting something immediately unattainable when there are things for us to accomplish in the here and now?

I guess I'm trying to say that fog can be a blessing. It forces us to look down at our feet and see what life has given us in the present. By wanting something different we miss the learning opportunities and joy that exists in our immediate surroundings. Trust that the life that exists before us, in the fog, will begreat, and enjoy it as it is revealed to us while continuing to walk steadily.