Pond Love 💙

I wish I could bottle it up for you!

I am still on a Nature high from yesterday morning’s walk.

It was a picture-perfect day: deep blue sky, temps in the 60s, puffy real clouds, and an on-and-off breeze.

But rumor has it that both ticks and black flies have arrived in New Hampshire. They both suck, I’m sorry to say. Our blood.

Determined to be able to enjoy spring and summer this year, I’ve been on a mission. I re-listened to this podcast about tick protocol, which really helped lower my fear factor (if not my ick factor) for these plain awful creatures.

One of the main takeaways was eating lots of raw garlic. And then I read that black flies don’t like garlic breath either!

I don’t particularly like it myself, but hey! It’s better than dealing with the bites. They can be brutal. And so, I decided to do a completely unscientific study using myself. I’ve been eating a clove of raw garlic every breakfast and lunch. Yum… :(

In addition, it’s rumored that using vanilla extract may repel mosquitos and biting flies. I’ve tried many natural remedies that didn’t work for me, but I thought I’d give this one a try.

Plain old vanilla extract. Some say to dilute it with water, and some say to use it at full strength. I bought a big bottle and have tried both, splashing a bit on my face, neck, and hands. It’s a little sticky, but if you like the scent, that’s a plus. Black flies love to bite around your face. Evidently, they love our CO2. But my CO2 reeks of garlic now. My face of vanilla.

So, imagine a scent called garlic-vanilla. Or vanilla-garlic.

I’m boring you with the bug stuff because I didn’t get out for my walk until 9:00 a.m., which is prime black fly time—9-11, to be exact.

I decided to throw caution to the wind and head for the Bog and the Pond. If there were black flies anywhere, they would surely be there.

I am happy to report that not one black fly or tick landed on me! This is huge! This morning’s walk (cloudy and humid - black flies love this forecast) was a success, as well. I’m hoping this isn’t just a fluke. I’ll keep you posted.

I promised in my last post that I would introduce you to the other Pond (and the Bog.) So, here they are:

A couple of years ago, I was shown this magical place, but despite my best efforts, I was never able to find it again. It’s not visible from the path. Then, one afternoon, I was walking through the woods and saw a woman hiking ahead of me. I’d never seen another human while out on my meanders. Can you imagine?

We stopped to chat, and she said she’d just been to the bog pond. What? I think my reaction might have startled her. And then she mentioned that she had seen

FIVE TURTLES! 🐢🐢🐢🐢🐢

If you’re new to my newsletter, you might not know about my love for them. You may want to pause and read “Turtle Tales.”

When I asked her if the Pond had a name, she took a moment before declaring, “Turtle Pond!”

Well, we said goodbye, and of course, I made my way pronto to the spot where she said to turn off the path. Old, worn planks had been laid down at some point, and I gingerly followed them, thinking to myself, “I wonder how deep this Bog is?”

When I finally reached the shore of Turtle Pond, it was like seeing a mirage—entering a portal into Narnia, Avalon, or Lemuria.

I was smitten with Pond Love at first sight.

It was like when I first saw Gone-Away Pond. And no, I haven’t forgotten about her.

Well, I scanned and scanned the shore for Turtles, but nada. So I made my way back to the path, startling a rather large Black Snake and almost causing me to fall into the bog with him (or her.)

I have had many important meetings with Black Snake, both in my dreams, my waking life, and during shamanic journeying. So, seeing this Snake on my first (well, technically second) visit to Turtle Pond was not quickly brushed away. One day, maybe I’ll write about my relationship with Snakes, specifically Black Snake.

I returned to Turtle Pond several times, but as hard as my eyes worked scanning the shore, I never once saw a Turtle.

Until yesterday.

Later in the day, I learned from a friend that May 7th was supposed to be a particularly potent day (in a good way) astrologically. Last night, there was also a new moon in Taurus.

But I was unaware of both of these things when I found myself meandering down the path through the Bog and to the edge of Turtle Pond.

It’s not like you can wander around the edge of the Pond. There are two wooden pallets to stand on. Venture off of them, and you’re in the Bog.

I get goosebumps now thinking about how I felt yesterday when I reached the edge of the Pond. Something was different.

Almost immediately, a beautiful Butterfly greeted me.

Then, I noticed Bees buzzing happily around the plants growing on the shore. Two of them buzzed around me, and I wondered, “Do I need pollinating, too?” Or maybe they like the scent of vanilla better than black flies!

I looked through my binoculars and scanned the shoreline, searching for Turtles -no expectations this time.

And then it happened. On this magical, auspicious May 7th day (I still don’t know why,) my eyes landed on not one but several large Turtles clustered together on the edge of the Bog.

It was too far away to get a good photo, but just so you believe me…

Down the shore was another huge Turtle, off by herself.

I watched them, mesmerized, for the longest time. They looked like Turtle soldiers, all facing west. Why, I wondered? What are they doing? Maybe they just love the feel of the sun on their backs.

Everywhere I looked, scanning the shore, I saw the sun shining on the black shells like they were calling me: “Here I am, here I am.” 🐢

I must have seen two dozen Turtles in all. Maybe I’m exaggerating. Who cares? There were a lot of them, that’s for sure.

No bugs were biting me. They were leaving me and my vanilla-garlic scent alone. There was just the slightest breeze.

I thought to myself, “It is a perfect morning, and I wish I could bottle up how I’m feeling right now to share with everyone.”

I felt the big grin on my face. My heart was full of something too hard to describe. Watching wildlife in their natural habitat—both the plants and the animals—puts you deeply in the present moment, casting aside worries.

Even the bedraggled Black Spruce Pines are special. Most of the growth is on top, but they still appear to be thriving. They look weathered as trees would living in the middle of a Bog, but they’re so cheerful and alive. I love them.

The Pines across Turtle Pond seemed to be waving. Or dancing…

Joy was sparkling inside of me, and as I had this thought (I’m not making this up!” the Pond burst into sparkles!

My mind couldn’t help but think of the scene in Merlin where he was badly injured and the Villa, spirits of the brooks and streams, healed him.

There’s magic all around us. It’s so deeply connected to Nature that when you get out in it - especially in solitude - anything is possible.

Standing on the shore, drinking this all in, I saw movement in the water in front of me. A little head kept bobbing up, and I thought surely it was another Turtle.

But, no, it was a big Black Snake swimming towards the shore, where I saw him slither away into the Bog.

Wow, what a sign.

A Blue Dragonfly swooped by me then, his wings glistening in the sun. More sparkles!

I’m so grateful. I will never forget that morning's feeling of peace, serenity, and gratitude, all of it from a humble Pond tucked in the woods: Dragonfly, Turtle, Snake, Bee, Lillypad, Pond, Pines, Bog, Chickadee, Plants.

All of the elements played a role.

The Water of the Pond (and the Bog.)

The Earth of the Rocks and the Land.

The Fire of the Sun.

And the Air, swirling her gentle breeze.

Time stood still, and I didn’t want to go home. I said goodbye and thank you. I thanked them all, and the Blue Dragonfly made one last swoop in front of me before flying away.

On my way back, I stopped by Gone-Away Pond, the Pond who is still Number One in my heart. I kicked off my boots and sank my feet into her cold water. I looked up, and well, will wonders never cease? My first Turtle sighting! 🐢 Sunning herself on Sleeping Bear Rock:

When I arrived back home, I turned my phone on and saw a message from my friend, Constance, who mentioned the significance of May 7th. She had serendipitously included screenshots of a few pages from one of my favorite books: “Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom” by John O’Donohue.

Anam Cara means “soul friend.”

I think this is a perfect ending to my post.

The Celtic Reverence For The Day

Celtic spirituality has a great sense of the significance of each day, how the new day is sacred. The Celts never entered the day with a repetitious deadening perspective, they took each day as a new beginning.

For the Celtic person the new day was lived amidst nature. It is easy to have a creative sense of the day when you live in the presence of the great divinity called nature. For the Celtic people, nature was not matter, rather it was a luminous and numinous presence that had depth, possibility, and beauty.

This notion of the day as a sacred place offers a lovely frame for the creativity that a day can bring. Your life becomes the shape of the days you inhabit. Days enter us. Sadly, in modern life, the day is often a cage where a person can lose youthfulness, energy, and strength.

—John O’Donohue, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom”

Much Love,
Barbara

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