Revving Up While Slowing Down

So much happening right now...hard to know where to begin.  But continuing with the theme of countercultural activities for a moment...

Fishing is one way to slow down, enjoy the beauty of nature, and keep my son focused on something BESIDES video games.  Last Sunday at Santa Cruz Pier was part of that low-technology campaign.  And it will continue this weekend, as I've signed us up to participate in Coastal Cleanup Day at Half Moon Bay; we might take advantage of that trip to get in some more fishing, probably at Pillar Point Harbor.

Another activity that my son will start to pursue this year is 4-H, which has a great chapter in Cupertino.  I've got Jesse signed up for the rabbit project, which meets once a month, starting in October, and basically covers all aspects of rabbit care.  We don't even have a rabbit; but we've held them many times on "Bunny Day" at the local pet store, and Jesse gets so much pleasure from that--his whole system seems to slow down and a special, quiet smile spreads across his face when he's holding a bunny--that I'm pretty sure he'll enjoy being a part of the 4-H rabbit group, for the next year at least.  And who knows, it could inspire him to get involved with animal care in a more significant way.

Last Saturday we took a tour of the 4-H farm at McClellan Ranch in Cupertino.  Two boys, about eleven years old and as excitable and awkward and wonderful as eleven-year-old boys can be, took us past the goat, mini-horse and chicken enclosures; with pride in their eyes, they held up a couple of beautiful chickens and let us stroke their feathers.  They'd raised them from when they were tiny chicks to their present, full-grown splendor.  It was, again, a pause and a step away from the computer and video-oriented world my son is steeped in, and I'm very grateful that he can have that experience once in a while.

My husband and I periodically dream of stepping away from Silicon Valley for good, buying a little house out in the middle of Montana or Washington State...the chances of that seem to be fading at the moment, for a variety of reasons.  But even as I start revving up for a series of fall activities, I'm enjoying these little moments to slow down, breathe more deeply, and just shed myself of all the trappings of contemporary, Silicon Valley life.  It makes a big difference.