The outing

I'm a lumberjack and I'm OK!

Said the Libby to the Miller: "The aspens are turning."

A beautiful day!

Kathy and I drove up to Hyde Park outside of Santa Fe and adjacent to the Santa Fe National Forest. It was an incredibly beautiful day. We saw the glories of autumn in forests where aspens turn golden, like a shower of coins (feeling nervous, Danae?).

She heard the full tale of how my ex and I met, the wild incandescent fling I had after he and I split, all the poems of love and grieving I wrote a few years back (well almost all). Themes of life and hope and loss and grief and ongoing transformation and the eternal invitation into the future.

As we were descending from the mountains we saw some plumes of smoke. By the time we got back down to Santa Fe you could see great clouds of smoke. Pray for those endangered by wildfires.

We had lunch at Tomasita's next to the train station in Santa Fe. Kathy remembers when Tomasita's was a converted private house on Hickox, many years ago. I promised to lift a margarita for Doxy and I did so. The food was delicious.

Lots of revisiting memories for both of us, and allowing time and grace to carry us forward.

And that, my friends, was my sabbath adventure. (I know - I traveled more than 1,000 paces from home; do I look observant? Mr. Green Chile Cheeseburger?)

The conclusion of one poem:

and I breathed the morning air
grateful for the time
our hearts made love
as we slept.

--the BB

Visual tour of Bishop Lamy's Cathedral

Baptismal Font
Cathedral and Basilica of St Francis
Santa Fe, New Mexico

You may see my album of photos of the Cathedral here.

--the BB

Beware of smiling bears

Yesterday in front of Bishop Lamy's cathedral in Santa Fe

A more beatific face:

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha

--the BB

La Conquistadora

Here is a teaser, one photo of many I took yesterday afternoon in the Cathedral Basilica of St Francis, Santa Fe. This is the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary, La Conquistadora, "[t]he oldest statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the United States to whom a constant public devotion has been maintained."

A very devout history of the image may be found here.

You may click the photo to embiggen.

The quick report:
Lovely seeing old friends and meeting new ones at breakfast yesterday in Bernalillo. Since there was wifi at the Flying Star, I hung there until 1 then drove to Santa Fe. Met my BFF at the Plaza and we toured the cathedral, with my snapping away (about 60 photos). Then off to the condo on the north end of town, some time by the pool, and dinner at Max's. The food was really fine, from salads through entrées to dessert. We ordered different dishes, tasted each others, it was all superb. Washed it down with a couple of bottles of St Sulpice Bordeaux. Then to the Santa Fe Opera for Don Giovanni. Good strong singers. Lovely evening. This morning breakfast at Zia Café. Terrific. My friends, meanwhile, discovered two other good eateries yesterday at breakfast and lunch, Clafouti and Tart's Treats. All on Guadalupe in Santa Fe. Major eating weekend.

I think I'm going to open some boxes and play with computers later today.

--the BB