still the days

2.23.2020


I woke up on the 14th buzzing with happy anticipation of the day.  Not only was it Valentine's Day - a day we have tried to make special in a very noncommercial way the last several years - it was the day we were packing up the car and driving to the Oregon coast for the weekend.  I think all three of us were more than ready to get out of our small town for a few days, and to visit Portland and Salem on the way.  

We took our time as we were in no particular rush, driving by our Portland house and visiting my beloved trees behind it, then walking  around Salem and riding the carousel that Thor rode so many times when he was little.  By the time we made it to our little cottage at the coast it was dark, stormy, and we were very hungry.  After checking in, we went to the closest market to pick up food and drinks, and quite contentedly spent the rest of the evening in front of the fireplace listening to the ocean that was just past our window.  

The next day we took Pip to meet the ocean, first below our cottage, then at Otter Rock.  He ran in big circles just like Klaus used to do, and it made us so happy to see.  It was  windy, pouring rain, and we had the beach entirely to ourselves.  After that we wandered a bit, going to Depoe Bay, Newport, eating in Nye Beach, then eventually settling back into our cottage as darkness fell.  

The days with Thor are increasingly precious as the window of time  he will still be at home grows smaller.  When we were in Salem, the memories hit me hard ... those were such happy days in his young life, with neighborhood friends coming and going, and endless outdoor adventuring by the three of us. Selfishly, I don't want his childhood to end.  But, there are still a few years left.  These are still the days.  

We talked a lot about how much we love this side of Oregon that is so much a part of us, that someday we will return there.  The time is right for us to be where we are for the next few years, but the pull of the forested, misty, fern-filled side of Oregon will take us back there someday.  


by mlekoshi