Saturdays

OK, The new week has started here at La Serannia. Winter has arrived bringing the urge for sleep ins and more tea, and makes this place really feel like home! The last few nights having the kids here has been lovely, wandering down to the lamp lit barn, for a few wines and a little sing and a movie and mostly being silly and rude and then around midnight I crawl out of there all wine-filled and joyous, to climb up to the main house under the canopy of great cold-night stars, all glistening and gentle, into my own cosy bed. And now the kids have gone, flew down the highway today and out of the mountain range, after a breakfast and a hug, A busy day ensued, all parties coming and going, new team arriving, old team leaving with all thier debris and flowers and paint-marks on the floorboards for us to deal with. And all of us staff jostled around eachother in a synchronious dance of efficiency getting the whole place made over for the arrival of more American women to come and demand more coffee and enjoy the place. The last group were great, although harked from an insular and repbublican world of South Carolina and to me it felt like all this *find yourself* week away thing was like an accesory, or a lifestyle thing, other than something real, or deep. But, everyone that comes here harks from a different world and for different reasons. These picket-fence ladies with their boys and husbands out hunting for the week while their gone, still must have gained something from here, even if its just a great memory and alot of fun talking about dreams and getting imaginitive. Even though it all felt a little novelty.
This new group seem great, older, artist types, a group I would like to join, more serious, more sincere. Harking from New Mexico and Sonoma, New York and Chicago, an interesting bunch to get to know and learn from this week, my last week. I have compiled a little list of things to do before my departure next week and as i went walking this afternoon I realised Oh how I must come and paint these feilds, these gnarly figs trees dancing together over centuries, these lambs and rams and groves! But it was a thought that I could do this for eternity. And even if I dont end up having the time to do this, it makes these landscapes eternal soils for my imagination and creativity. I soak up these last days, and appreciate the friends and relationships I have made. The next three weeks in Barcelona with the kids are going to be fun, and a reward, somewhat, for the weeks of comtemplation, patience, learning.