(copyright 2010 Rus VanWestervelt, Holly Beach Farm Road, Annapolis, MD 27 March 2010)

Namaste. It is 7:04 p.m.

Well, I made it. I’m grateful for the journey, the support along the way, and the awakening I’ve experienced. In these 40 days, I have stilled the waters enough to refocus my life on the things that are most important (God, family, service) and have allowed love to fill me from all things near and far. I thank you for keeping me company along the way.

As I mentioned in my last post, though, it is not over by any means. I will continue with a strict vegetarian diet, strengthen my “presbyterian buddhist” foundation, as my wonderful friend likes to call it, and live my moments a little more simply, a little more fully (quality, not quantity), and continue to immerse myself fully in our natural surroundings rather than on social networks (I will be logging back on to Facebook tonight, though, limiting my time there to once an evening).

The picture above, taken yesterday outside Annapolis, sums up the journey nicely. Solitary as the red-winged blackbird in quiet contemplation. perched high in grasses, observing and cherishing all.

I lived deliberately these 40 days, sucking the marrow of life along the way, and I learned that leading a life in quiet desperation is hard to change. It is possible, though, and I hope that, in the months and years to come, I can look back at these first 40 days and know with confidence that they were not spent in vain.

Love to all of you. It is time now to move on.

Rus