Strange as it may seem, and mostly due to my growing belly, I have been blogging quite a bit...in my mind...as I lay restless in bed at 3 or 4 in the morning. I always intend to post these thoughts, especially because they seem so very compelling at that hour of the morning, but alas the first two weeks of the year have gone by and I continue to just mind-blog in order to get back to sleep. :) The days as they always seem to ...ARE FLYING BY! I was thankful to say goodbye to 2011 and am genuinely excited and ready for all that is to come in this new year. January 3rd brought with it an ultrasound of the newest bean and the reality of our pending life change, as well as an impetus to change the title of this blog. I can no longer just "blog Nina" and it seems that this is really MY venting place, so it should be renamed appropriately! :) A friend of mine in Bend chose a word to start her year, and I can appreciate the meaning behind it. I too feel that I must define this year with a name...as it seems to be full of promise and change. And so...a name has hatched out of pleasant memory and solid meaning ...sustinere. I love this word. It just rolls off of your tongue. It is both structural and soulful at the same time. In short definition it means to "hold up", "endure" or "sustain". As of late, this completely defines my presence on this earth, and I suppose that of most mothers/women everywhere. It is our daily joy/burden/love/ache to endure that which we are given and sustain ourselves and our families no matter where we are or what we face. This is not meant to be negative, rather life affirming and powerful, as there is a strength and a beauty associated with sustaining humanity. Anyhow, I came across this word many years ago on a jaunt to the Methow Valley ( one of my secret favorite places). It was the name of their local magazine/journal and I picked it up on a free stand in a coffee shop. Inside the natural paper pages were simple drawings of homemade compost bins, watercolors of families in the community and colored pencil sketches of green-built structures in the North Cascades. It was this little slice of heaven in a community publication, and I have held onto it ever since. I always come across it when I am sorting through journals and scraps of saved papers and pictures from previous years...I do this every January...and this year I thought that I would shamefully steal the title for my own family and self.
So here we go...our little family of nearly four is starting out the year in much the same fashion that we started out last year. We have no idea where we will be in six months! :) John starts his third and final semester on Tuesday and my job will most likely end March 1st. We are hoping he can slide into a new grad position at St. Charles and return to Bend...but based on their current hiring this does not look promising. So...we are considering extending the adventure and looking at new places to live/explore while he "gains experience". We shall see... In any event it makes life anything but dull and we are committing ourselves to give in to the unknown and just enjoy our time and space here in Flag. Today we are off to the Grand Canyon for Free National Parks Day...and a little road trip. Looking forward to a picnic by the rim, scaling the stairs at the Watchtower and a beautiful day hike in our 50 degree January weather. This is what will sustain us today...and build memories of our time here in Arizona.
