I was frozen in terror.
Last Wednesday night. There was a violent, crazy man harassing us, banging on our door, screaming, refusing to leave. I had just got off work, and was in the shower when it all started. Since there was other people in the house I figured that someone would open the door, and deal with it. My country brain, figured it was a neighbor or friend..(I had temporarily forgotten that I’m in Las Vegas now.) It was not a neighbor, or a friend. It was a stranger. He refused to say who he was. There was no identification on the big white truck parked sideways outside, blocking our driveway. He was getting more violent, and loud by the minute.
Can I get you some coffee? Or tea?
We had to call the cops on him. If this would have been a few years ago that first sentence would have been true. Not now. (It was just too tempting to add some drama.) You see, my ex husband is a Marine. During rare occasions when we spent time in the same house, (that did not happen so often,) we had drill exercises. The exercises was about what to do if A happens, and what to not do if B happens..(I used to hate them. I think we covered a few hundred different scenarios. They were more like lectures, the way a bad teacher would teach a child something.) Anyways, the number one thing he actually taught me, besides handling weapons (which I am very grateful for,) was to keep my cool in any given situation (which was very ironic. If you knew him, you would know.) The other night when the loco guy was banging on the door, I did not freeze. When I understood what was happening, I knew what to do without thinking. That felt good. The auto pilot worked. In this case the right thing to do was to lock myself in with the kids, in the safest room, where no gunfire (if there should be any,) could reach us (there never was any guns involved,) and with proper means of defense, and wait for the police to come and handle it (since we’re in a big city they are always close by.) I should probably thank my ex the next time I see him. Yes, I’ll definitely do that. No one was harmed in this incident. The loco guy was arrested.
Besides that little incident, that took up quiet a bit of time Wednesday evening, it’s been a beautiful, peaceful week.
This week have been more of the mindful kind. I’ve done a lot of meditating, and some yoga. I’m re-reading Eckhart Tolle’s The power of now. I am enjoying the read even more this time, than the last time around (probably ten years ago.) It’s an empowering book, if you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it. You don’t have to agree with everything, just read with an open mind.
I have experimented a little bit with my (newish) camera. I feel that I got off to a good start with that. I learned a couple new things.
Unedited version of a rose in our backyard.
Lightly edited version of the same photo. A little cropped, and the light slightly enhanced. I like my photos to look natural. I never add, or take things away. Enhancing the light, and cropping the photos to show the image the way I perceived it when I took it, is more my style. I want the viewer to see what captured my attention. To see what it was that made me feel good, stop a heart beat, or get the adrenaline rushing – depending on the picture.
I went to the gym three mornings, and walked 5 miles every day. I’ve been taking good care of myself, after the scare a few weeks ago. I sleep 7-8 hours every night, eat good, and feel strong.
It’s going to be 85 this weekend. A little crazy considering it’s the end of October. I have a couple wishes for the weekend; to spend time with my daughter, find a 4×4 truck, take some pictures, and do some hiking. There is going to be some baking on Sunday. I’m participating in a pumpkin carving contest on Monday, and I promised to bring cookies. I haven’t baked cookies in forever, that’ll be fun.
What do you wish for this weekend?
Love,
Ms Zen
