We G.O.O.D. (Got Out of Davis)!
by Sara
The beginning of our journey was a slow and somewhat painful one - uprooting ourselves from a loving community that has really been coming together for us in the last couple of years, the place we call "the golden handcuffs:" Davis, California.
Today we celebrated 4th of July by swimming at the Rec Pool, and hanging out with friends in their yard: splashing, eating great food, mudpiling, drinking odd colored malt beverages and then heading to our favorite fireworks viewing spot on the greenbelt for what Tara called "fun!" (she was the best "ooh-ah"-er in the crowd!) It was the kind of day I will miss.
Last week we moved out of our house - about 10 minutes before someone else moved in! And during the weekend of our move we visited an intentional community in Sonoma, went to a wonderful dinner party, and had the best going-away party ever (the kid's just seemed to have so much fun in the park, and even I was relaxed!). Life in Davis actually felt quite good.
And to top that, we even had what really should be called a "rooting ceremony." I had several important family artifacts that needed a permanent home: our beloved dog's ashes (Mawball's - the greatest family canine ever!)in our fireplace puja corner, both Violet and Tara's placentas (from their home-births at 221 Lindo) in the freezer )and I couldn't very well leave those ziplocs for the tenant), and a native Buckeye tree that I had started from seed in Oakland* waiting in a neglected black plastic pot.
So, I thawed out the placentas, took a handful of soil from under the Fuyu tree where Satya's placenta was buried**, dusted off the cedar box with Mawball's tags and ashes, gathered all the piles of rocks and shells and feathers that we all had collected over the years and piled in our rooms, our puja corner, the bathrooms, etc., and called Ajay, Satya, Violet and Tara together in the backyard. The bunnies, Puff and Scruff, (now lovingly cared for by our GodBlessHerFantasticHousekeeper Leticia) had recently vacated the Northwest corner of our yard, in just the spot, beneath the redwoods that I had sometime ago planned to plant the Buckeye in, so their feces contributed too.
We gathered in a circle around the hole, spread the ashes, examined the placentas (Tara's still had it's cord; Violet's had been dried in the shape of a heart by her midwife, Amy), sprinkled Satya's soil, filled the hole, and watered the tree and then placed all our stones, shells, and feathers all arond the base of the tree. Ajay said it felt like a fist in his belly - having this thoughtful, and rooting ceremony, during the last hour of our time in our family home. For me it was closure. I had put off dealing with all these pieces of our life, waiting for the "right" place to plant them, presumably in someother house that would satisfy me. And now we were leaving, and Davis was the right "home" for all these things, even if not necessarily for me. As they say: "only time will tell." I am so curious to know if we will return to 221 Lindo Place, or even to Davis.
* After unhappily leaving a marriage counseling session one weekday morning in the late '90s, I drove right past my workplace in Emeryville, across the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges and up into Marin until the greenery slowed me down. I found myself at the Spirit Rock meditation center, and after re-balancing myself under the blessed shade of it's parent tree, I picked up this giant chestnut-looking seed of what I later learned was a Buckeye tree - a sprawling native Californian tree with fragrant white flowers. On that same morning, I also discovered an amazing 100 year old Magnolia tree that was encircled by a 75-foot radial ring of its offshoots.
** His placenta was actually buried under an orange tree on his third birthday, but that didn't survive, so we took soil from there to plant the Fuyu!
The beginning of our journey was a slow and somewhat painful one - uprooting ourselves from a loving community that has really been coming together for us in the last couple of years, the place we call "the golden handcuffs:" Davis, California.
Today we celebrated 4th of July by swimming at the Rec Pool, and hanging out with friends in their yard: splashing, eating great food, mudpiling, drinking odd colored malt beverages and then heading to our favorite fireworks viewing spot on the greenbelt for what Tara called "fun!" (she was the best "ooh-ah"-er in the crowd!) It was the kind of day I will miss.
Last week we moved out of our house - about 10 minutes before someone else moved in! And during the weekend of our move we visited an intentional community in Sonoma, went to a wonderful dinner party, and had the best going-away party ever (the kid's just seemed to have so much fun in the park, and even I was relaxed!). Life in Davis actually felt quite good.
And to top that, we even had what really should be called a "rooting ceremony." I had several important family artifacts that needed a permanent home: our beloved dog's ashes (Mawball's - the greatest family canine ever!)in our fireplace puja corner, both Violet and Tara's placentas (from their home-births at 221 Lindo) in the freezer )and I couldn't very well leave those ziplocs for the tenant), and a native Buckeye tree that I had started from seed in Oakland* waiting in a neglected black plastic pot.
So, I thawed out the placentas, took a handful of soil from under the Fuyu tree where Satya's placenta was buried**, dusted off the cedar box with Mawball's tags and ashes, gathered all the piles of rocks and shells and feathers that we all had collected over the years and piled in our rooms, our puja corner, the bathrooms, etc., and called Ajay, Satya, Violet and Tara together in the backyard. The bunnies, Puff and Scruff, (now lovingly cared for by our GodBlessHerFantasticHousekeeper Leticia) had recently vacated the Northwest corner of our yard, in just the spot, beneath the redwoods that I had sometime ago planned to plant the Buckeye in, so their feces contributed too.
We gathered in a circle around the hole, spread the ashes, examined the placentas (Tara's still had it's cord; Violet's had been dried in the shape of a heart by her midwife, Amy), sprinkled Satya's soil, filled the hole, and watered the tree and then placed all our stones, shells, and feathers all arond the base of the tree. Ajay said it felt like a fist in his belly - having this thoughtful, and rooting ceremony, during the last hour of our time in our family home. For me it was closure. I had put off dealing with all these pieces of our life, waiting for the "right" place to plant them, presumably in someother house that would satisfy me. And now we were leaving, and Davis was the right "home" for all these things, even if not necessarily for me. As they say: "only time will tell." I am so curious to know if we will return to 221 Lindo Place, or even to Davis.
* After unhappily leaving a marriage counseling session one weekday morning in the late '90s, I drove right past my workplace in Emeryville, across the Bay and Golden Gate Bridges and up into Marin until the greenery slowed me down. I found myself at the Spirit Rock meditation center, and after re-balancing myself under the blessed shade of it's parent tree, I picked up this giant chestnut-looking seed of what I later learned was a Buckeye tree - a sprawling native Californian tree with fragrant white flowers. On that same morning, I also discovered an amazing 100 year old Magnolia tree that was encircled by a 75-foot radial ring of its offshoots.
** His placenta was actually buried under an orange tree on his third birthday, but that didn't survive, so we took soil from there to plant the Fuyu!
posted by Sara and Ajay at 11:41 PM
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