I've noticed some happenings lately that are great and interesting. I've noticed several of these over the past many days, and it's starting to feel as though they come like waves, washing onto the sand. I never know when, even when I'm I'm sleeping! Go figure. I believe the feature they all have in common is that they all contain a new breath of awareness within them. I'll give an example, which just happened about 5 minutes ago.

After walking around town this morning, I found myself feeling like I needed to return to the Hostal and perhaps lie down for a while and get a nap or something. I decided instead, to go up to the roof and take ownership of the hammock for a while and perhaps get a wink or two.

So I grabbed a book that Jason so thoughtfully gave me along with my glasses and a peach flavored iced tea. Oh, and my notebook an pen. By the way, only a few chapters into this book, I can already feel my gratitude amassing toward Jason C. For giving me the book!

I took position in the hammock and, as always in the afternoon, the clouds began to gather around the mountain peaks across the valley and city and start their marching swirl around Pichincha, sometimes yielding a shower or two, sometimes not. The hammock, the tea, the push and pull of warmth and cool, the muted sounds of the city below, and the text of my book, the gift, all came together to create an indescribable sense of peace.

I wrote a few notes observations into my notebook taking in this great sense of serenity and calmness, and decided to get up and walk to the edge and take in this beautiful transformation that was occurring before my eyes, when I spotted a 'Poodleish' looking dog down below curled with her feet tucked underneath, her eyes slowly dimming to almost closed, and in her want to stay alert, opening again to full width.

There's a little history here that deserves mentioning. The dog's husband usually stands century over the street below. There's been many a night where Sir Lancelot, a slightly more scruffy version of his mate (you can only see one eye) barks without tire, at anyone who happens by in the pseudo-alley below. I definately had developed an opinion of him!

As I stood against the retaining wall at the edge of the roof, I made a slight kiss noise, very low; I was actually surprised that she heard it, but instantly her eyes popped open and she cast a glare my way, popping to attention without leaving her comfortable position.

She looked at me and I signaled again with that very ever so slight kiss sound and I say her ears lift, so I was sure she was looking at me. We looked at each other for some time, say, two minutes, then her ears lowered and she went back to her semi-dozing state. I guess she could sense my peace and therefore relaxed any initial alarm she may have felt.

We looked at each other for some time, and without words being spoken or barked, a lot was communicated. I felt a lot of joy in that. Then turned my eyes back to the mountains and clouds and their dynamic dance.

Then, here comes Sir Lancelot! He trots in, I guess from inside the house, and takes one jump up onto a roof vent which provides him leverage enough to jump to the top of the big concrete thing that holds up the close line, which gave him strategic opportunity to make it atop the rounded tile roof, where he so bravely walks to the edge and finally takes century over the world below. All the while never noticing me.

I decided to see what kind of response Lance would offer back should I obtain his attention the same way I did his wife's, of course unbeknownst to him. Which I did. Now Lance was already on guard and at post looking for danger to his domicile. His ears were already up and spongeing every sound he could from the chaotic world below.

His mouth took poise to bark, but it was as though he stopped at "BA...".

I watched as his eyes assessed me. Again, I myself was feeling a great sense of peace at the moment. I sort of smiled, the made another one of those 'kiss' sounds. Ears perked again, tail straight and erect, his eyes focused. The just as with Dame Lancelot, we engaged in mutual observation. After about two or three minutes I saw his tail do about two or three wiggles, then he turned around and took the same trail off the roof, stood by his mate and slowly gazed around.

Again, I felt as though not a word or bark spoken, we communicated deeper and more intuitively than some people do with one another. On top of all of that, I was accepted as a non-threat, which by his standards, is a great extension of trust.

I watched them both for a while till the clouds determined that they indeed were going to yield rain.

So, I returned to my hammock, which is wonderfully situated underneath a shelter, and decided to write this down as I'm doing now.

There is an additional point to be made that that ties into 'those waves of epiphanies' lapping the sand.

If you've hung around me for any length of time, you've probably heard me speak of my bewilderment regarding how children, say those below the age of four, will always stare, talk, reach out, or point me out to momma in grocery stores, on the street, or where ever. I've never understood what was going on there. Oftentimes the child will start giggling and want to touch me, and of course his cautious and protective mother will turn her body do the child is placed a greater distance from me and continue what she was doing.

Well, I understand now. Like Sir Lancelot, a child starts developing his defensive behavior young, as he begins to understand the cautions they are trying to teach him.

At young enough an age they have no pre-conceived notions of threat, fear, or their associated responses. I think, when a child is looking around and I catch his eye, he only looks into my behavior, allowing instinct to rule the conversation. He sees no malice and only gentle and good thoughts emulating from my being and takes the reigns himself and wants to associate. Just like Sir Lancelot and his wife did.

Again, an epiphany, small as it was brought me an immense amount of joy. As you can see probably from the length of this post.

I'm going to see if I can't catch a picture of Sir Lancelot and his dame to accompany this post. Probably not, I'm sure he's off duty due to the rain. But I'll probably hear from him tonight.

-robert