A door shuts, it begins. At first, seemingly quiet. Early morning buzz, high voltage quiet. Then a hello, a guy walking his dog. Then the sound of my own shoes. Click click click. The sound-sounds begin. High pitched squeaking of wheels as they come to a slow stop. Brum brum, another goes. Other people’s shows. Wanting to close my eyes but not, because somehow the opening of my ears is making what I see brighter. More saturated. 

Bus pulls, quiet noise. Kids laugh, flirting silence. The bus lets off. I stand beside a blind woman. We both listen to the traffic. I resist looking at the light. The cars like wind. Sounds indicating when to stop and when to go. 

​What did you hear?

Beautifulness on the path. Grateful for the day, for friends, for nature. Today, Foothill Regional Park. What was your hike?

I suppose the chapter title could have been taken in another way - and I'm also down for "making bread", but for this one, I decided to literally make bread.  And gluten-free and vegan to boot!  It was fun and while it wasn't perfect, I learned and am excited to try again soon.

I started with a recipe for Tiger Nut Bread on the Organic Gemini site HERE. It called for six eggs so I substituted it for flax "eggs", made some changes to the sweeteners and switched ground flax for almond flour - I figured with the flax eggs that was definitely enough flax! 

Here's the recipe as I adapted it.
WET INGREDIENTS
IN A BOWL (mix the following):
3/4 cup Tahini
Flax Eggs (6 T ground flax and 14 T water - shake in a mason jar, let stand 10-15 minutes (until it becomes gelatinous) then use)
1 T Manuka Honey
1 T Molasses
1/4 cup Organic Coconut Oil
1/2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

DRY INGREDIENTS
IN ANOTHER BOWL (combine the following, then sift into wet mix above):
3 T Tiger Nut Flour
1/4 cup Almond Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda (gluten-free)
​a Pinch salt (optional)

PREHEAT OVEN TO 350. 

Place bread mix in loaf pan. I didn't have one so I tried some in cupcake tins and the rest ladled onto a cooking sheet that had coconut oil and a titch tiger nut flour so as not to stick.

Let stand and cut. I added a little Miyoko's vegan butter and cracked pepper on top. 

Next time I would definitely do it in a loaf pan, skip on the molasses and instead do 2 T manuka honey, and cook 30 minutes instead of 40.

Thank you Organic Gemini for inspiring me make this bread. ORIGINAL RECIPE FROM ORGANIC GEMINI.

What kind of bread did you make?

“We must never stop dreaming. Dreams provide nourishment for the soul, just as a meal does for the body.  Many times in our lives we see our dreams shattered and our desires frustrated, but we have to continue dreaming.  If we don't, our soul dies, and agape cannot reach it.”
​- Paulo Coelho The Pilgrimage

I remember reading The Pilgrimage by Paulo Coelho years ago.  It planted a seed, asked to be researched, imagined and ultimately felt.  I've dreamt about going on this infamous Journey for years.  I even prepared to go, carved out a month, and then found myself injured and unable to carry a pack.  And yet, this dream persists.  The movie, The Way, was another look at what such a journey could be like.  Alone and with others.  And such a great flick. 

The longing is still very much alive in me and definitely on my bucket list - so, today, I'm committing to doing the Camino before I kick it.  That's my dealer's choice. 

Back in the day I found this great vintage card table.  It doubles as a sort of suitcase with metal legs that can unscrew and be placed inside, with room enough for games and such.  I've been using it as a table for years but it's been a long spell since games were played.  Tonight, I met up with one of my neighbors - bringing the card table and a couple chairs to the street, first thing he said was, "oh, if this card table could talk."   And yes, that old wood and rusty metal bits definitely have stories!

I loved hanging out with someone I usually only see in passing and really loved the sort of energy that gathered as the night went on.  Kind of like a buffet at a party, people just flocked to it.  Stories were shared and I even got to learn a new game: "7 card no peek".

Grateful for this day.  It was a little scary.  Felt like a school girl, asking, "hey, do you wanna play with me?"  But, you know, worse thing that could have been said was "no".  And I got a "yes".  Mission accomplished! 

First I chewed 20 times, then 30... these were easy, sweet, restful.  Then I attempted 40 and 50 chews, seemingly impossible with the cucumber and blackberries, but the jicama made it to 45!  The counting was so meditative.  After I finished, I felt calm, calm, calm.  

Oh my goodness, who knew it was going to be so difficult to enter a church! I've done this exercise multiple times over the years since first beginning Something New in 2014. There were always so many, especially in New York - and always doors opened wide. But somehow, I couldn't find an open church to save my life! This photo is from the time I ventured into a church with an art exhibit on the upper west side with my dear friend and mentor John.  

I'm going to revisit this one... churches always bring up so much for me - Day 18 will resurface again, no doubt! 

Life happened and I'm doing Day 17 two days later!  Gotta love what that brings up - Virgo rising - wanting everything to be done on time mind trip... (life lessons).

This morning my body was feeling a little sore.  Felt having something anti-inflammatory was the way to go.

Turmeric Grapefruit Juice
- Fresh squeezed organic grapefruit
- 2 droppers full of turmeric tincture
- Cracked tricolored peppercorns. 

​Down the hatch!   Anti-inflammatory goodness.  Careful of that last peppery sip!

Look up!  And such beauty all around.  Here's a simple little tree I stood beneath, with leaves and branches - more leaves than most... winter garb.  Grateful for you trees!  What did you see with your sights above?