The next few days I had my routine of coffee with Lynsey in the mornings, then I would head down to work at the marijuana field around eight. The owner of the farm was a very kind man named Gary. He told me I could work whatever hours I wanted for as long as I wanted. I enjoyed going in early to give me a head-start to the day. We were de-leafing the plants. I’ve always loved gardening and plants in general, and I was in my glory. It was meditative work.
After working all day I would head back to Lynsey’s to relax and do yoga. It was nice to have some down time and to hang out with Lynsey. We became good friends as the week went on. We would eat dinner together and she took time to teach me cooking skills so I could continue to improve.
The first night I was at Lynsey’s house also happened to be the night a dance group called Cosmic Creation met there. I had learned about this group at the last event, and wanted to join. It was led by a girl also named Tegan. It was a small group, and we started by doing some stretching and free dancing. Tegan then led us through different body rolls and belly dancing techniques. I definitely didn’t have the hang of it yet, but Tegan assured me that with time and practice, it would come.
We also did some journaling and then took words and phrases from our writing and used them to create a spoken dance piece. It was challenging, but fun. At the end of the night we all just hung out. I loved being part of such a strong group of women.
After working all week, I got hold of Vanessa to hang out. Since my car was still having problems, she came to pick me up with plans for going to a botanical garden. As we were leaving, though, we realized we wouldn’t make it there before it closed. We drove around chatting and saw a campground with a merry go round. We stopped with hopes to ride it, but were told it wouldn’t be started for a few hours. They did have a giant connect four game though, and we of course had to play it!
We continued to drive around until Vanessa said “I need nature.” We found a large, beautiful field and walked through it, enjoying the flowers, bugs, and trees that were all around. We laid together in the center of it and did a meditation.
Afterwards we drove around some more, and came to a large hotel with a large tent set up next to it. We pulled in to see what was going on, and realized a wedding was about happen! I’ve always wanted to crash a wedding, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. I was already in a dress and Vanessa happened to have one right in her car. We spotted the wedding photographer and asked him what time the wedding started, explaining that we had “lost” our invitations. He happily told us all the information we needed to know. We killed time exploring around the hotel and playing in the arcade until it was time for the reception.
Once everyone was over by the tent, we just slipped in. We went up to the open bar and each got lemonades. We signed the guest log, which was jenga blocks, and ate appetizers as they came around. After a while they started guiding people to their seats. Since everyone had assigned seats, we figured it would be best to slip out and return later for dancing.
We walked around outside the hotel, which had a golf course on the property. A man who was working there was parking the golf carts. I walked up to him and asked “what’s a girl gotta do to get a ride on a golf cart?” He looked up at Vanessa and I and said “the keys are in it, go for it, just come back in five minutes.” Thrilled, we both jumped on and took off before he could change his mind. We took turns zig-zagging all around the track, laughing the whole way.
After parking we went back to the wedding and hung out at a table outside the tent, swaying to the music. Eventually we moved onto the dance floor, and danced our hearts out.
Eventually they opened the buffet and we got in line, even though we noticed we were starting to get weird looks. That was when a woman came up to us. She asked us where we were sitting. Vanessa nonchalantly said “oh, table twelve.” The woman then asked us who we were sitting with, and when Vanessa told her we really didn’t know who they were, she got a bit of an attitude. “Oh, you don’t know? I’m going to have to ask you to leave!” We responded with “OK, that’s fine.” And gushed, “this was such a lovely wedding. Thank you SO much!” after which we took off, laughing hysterically.
We ended up going out for food since we weren’t able to get any from the buffet. Spending the day with Vanessa fed my soul and lightened my heart, and I knew that I had not only gained a friend, but also a sister.
Returning to Linsey’s I settled in for my last few days there. Earlier in the week, I wasn’t sure where I was going to go after Sunday. But Gary, the boss man, asked me what my situation was. I explained to him what was going on and that I didn’t really have a place to stay. He offered to let me stay in an RV he had parked on the farm. I would have a bed, electricity and even a kitchen! I was beyond grateful.
I was even able to find a mechanic to fix my car. I had called around to multiple places but none of them could get me in for several weeks. I knew I had to get it fixed before I left Maine, and I wanted to leave on Saturday morning for an event in Massachusetts. I had a good feeling about the last place I tried, Nate’s Auto. I explained my situation and asked if he could help. He said he was busy but he would make time to get my car in.
I wasn’t sure how I would get back to the farm after dropping my car off, but my luck held, and this place happened to be only three miles away. I dropped it off and walked to work with my backpack filled with some food and extra clothes. They put in a new battery, a new power steering line, tightened all my belts, bled the brake lines, changed my oil, changed my filters, and a whole bunch of other things. Not only that, but he got it all done in one day, and gave me a good price for all the work he did. I was so grateful to find someone who took the extra time to fit me in and do all the little things my car needed in one day!
I spent the next several days working on the farm, preparing meals on the stovetop, and sleeping in the RV. I returned to the Cosmic Creations dance group on Tuesday where Sarah, one of the girls there, brought me in a $10 veggie box from her garden so I could make healthy meals. Some nights my coworker, Nate, would stay in the other end of the RV. When he did, I would make him dinner as well. Although I’m still learning to cook and my options were limited, he ate everything I made, swearing it was good. I still don’t know if it was actually good or if he was just being nice.
One day after work I set out to find a swimming spot. I ended up finding a little boat launch area where I had the water to myself. I went in, lying on my back, floating on the small waves with my eyes closed. I heard a strange, whooshing noise. My eyes popped open to see a giant blue heron swooping in on me. I’m not sure if it didn’t see me, or thought I was a log, but it noticed me just in time to stop short of crashing into me. Although there are multiple ponds and blue herons near where I grew up, I’ve never been that close to one in my life.
I looked up the symbolism of a blue heron after that, and discovered it represents self reliance, determination, and strength. I knew the universe had sent it to me as a sign to keep going.
The next day Nate asked if I wanted to go swimming with him once we were done working. He took me to Step Falls. It was a place with a river flowing over and around giant rocks. There were multiple little water falls that fell into small swimming areas. Filled with excitement, I ran through all the waterfalls and jumped from rock to rock.
There were some areas where the flowing water created smooth parts where you could sit on the rocks and use them as slides. I found one slide with a rather steep slope, and I wasn’t sure if I should do it because it looked dangerous. It turned out I didn’t have a choice because I slipped and couldn’t stop. I flew down the rock, ramped off one part and got air before crashing into a pond area below. What an adrenaline rush! I laughed hysterically and so did Nate once he realized I wasn’t hurt.
We played and swam until we grew hungry, and then headed to a Mexican restaurant. Nate bought me dinner to thank me for cooking for him that week. Afterwards I went back to the RV to spend one last night before heading off to Massachusetts.
Hozzászólások