I Struck Oak!

7:57 J 1.9 degrees ooh. I still need to chop more wood tonight.

10:13 .6 degrees here I go to chop leaving my fire roaring and laundry hanging…J

11:48 furnace on -1.6 degrees out.

my fire is so beautifully roasty toasty and oh so very happy with what I’m feeding it..in gratitude, the logs settle and help me find their best fit.

I’d chopped enough elm for the morning but not very much of it for split elm like this burns real hot and real fast. It’s best when paired with oak as its complement: oak loves a hot elm to excite its deep flame, together they create a fire that neither can do on its own.

I’m running low on my oak supply, just this big stump buried in snow. I was heading inside, “I’ve enough for right now and my fingers are numb”, when that oak caught my eye:

it looked so solid, so strong, so hardy…el roble, the king.

I bowed with respect and asked: How are you feeling tonight?

You look so strong in the bright moonlight.

I gently wiped the snow off its face, admiring with awe the circles and lines.

I raised my ax high then brought it down straight

First strike chopped off a piece of perfect size

Second one too, then a

Third, fourth and fifth

Like chopping an apple

…eh. I need to stop.

I really just wanted to say it was amazing and incredible and molecule igniting. The moon in the sky with a wink in his eye filled with bright stars a crisp clear cold winter night is like magic, crystalline magic…my fingers were no longer cold – I was awake and alive and not the least bit freezing cold…I thanked all involved in this magical moment when this treasure was discovered…better than gold…(like when I discovered morel mountain last spring)…

          I felt blessed, I felt rich

          like I’d struck gold or oil

          In fact, what would I do

          with gold or with oil at that moment?

          Can’t burn it; can’t eat it…

          I’ll choose wood and morels

          Over gold and oil, any day

Wow. I really do need to stop.

I’m sleepy and ready to crawl into bed.  I’m so glad to have realized…and

geeze – I can’t get the words to say what I want…

When I feel uncomfortable, I remind myself gently: “I’m comfortable in my own skin…aha – I’m still in my skin!J”

Okay, shut up now, Lani. Stir the fire and go to bed.

Okay, I will.

12:27 -0.9 degrees

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