Beauty Beneath the Surface
            Beauty is not always easy to see.
         The Ugly Duckling eventually reveals its physical loveliness as a graceful swan, but not all beauty is visual.
        Those with disabilities often have quirks that dominate what the uninitiated see—atypical physical features, an inability to move easily or gracefully, behavior that doesn't match social expectations, cognitive or neurological challenges, difficulty with social interaction, intimidating medical needs.
            At a glance, those things may seem off-putting. Unfamiliarity may breed contempt.
           But for those of us who care for a person with disabilities, those differences do not preclude other forms of beauty.
            Though he rarely looks me in the eye, an autism trait making him seem aloof, I know that my son’s heart is full of love and sensitivity.
            Though his obsessive compulsions drive family members crazy with repeated irritating behaviors, the unconventional liveliness our son creates brings healing laughter of solidarity.
            Though his instinct to share physical affection appears rarely, the spontaneous hugs I receive from my son as I help him brush his teeth and wash his face melt my heart.
            His pure, innocent sharing of a warm hug. The twinkle in his eye when he feels we’ve shared an inside joke. His bravery in overcoming overwhelming sensory overload and fears to do something he needs to do. These express the beauty of my son’s heart.
            Thanks to those living with extraordinary challenges for sharing your beautiful selves with the rest of us, whether we be caregivers or strangers on the street. How true that we cannot judge books by their covers.
            This week’s Hike Notes introduce a Las Gallinas Pond Walk. Though a surprise choice at first glance—being part of a sewage treatment facility—the wildlife ponds at Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District offer beautiful views of Marin, and the chance to see an abundant variety of local birds, with an emphasis on a rich array of water fowl.
            Please feel free to share. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photos! Check the Home page for the broader background story. Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. 
            The list of hikes is getting long! Please check the Quick View Hike List or scroll down the main Hikes page to see the current list of hike notes.
New this week:
Hike Notes 90: Las Gallinas Pond Walk

Light and Shadow
            There’s something magical about transitions between bright day and dark night. Morning light breaking across the dim grays of dawn. Shadows of encroaching dusk growing longer on a trail still warm from the sun.
            The play between dark and light makes for enticing effects in a photographer’s arsenal. Sharp visual contrast stirs up emotions.
            Why? I don’t know. 
            In life as well, sharp transitions bring strong emotional highs and lows. The birth of a child, the death of a friend.
            The poignancy we sense as the sun rises above the rooftops, or sinks below an ocean horizon, comes naturally.
            Like a heartbroken lover intentionally wallowing in sad songs, perhaps looking at images of contrasting shadow and light vents our emotional steam at a controlled level.
            This week’s Hike Notes brings visitors to the Owl Trail, one of the most stunning stretches of ocean views along the coast. Though it’s one of the most beautiful trails, fortunately, it is not one of the most crowded.
            Please feel free to share. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photos! Check the Home page for the broader background story. Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. 
            The list of hikes is getting long! Please check the Quick View Hike List or scroll down the main Hikes page to see the current list of hike notes.
New this week:
Hike Notes 89: Owl Trail

Through Misty Glass
            Like many parents in the developmental challenge/special needs world, we gradually realized that “something was off” with our younger son.
            He avoided eye contact, didn’t respond when called by name, didn’t point to desired objects or use other typical gestures, and struggled mightily with language, receptively and expressively. And there were monumental freeze-ups and meltdowns.
            Trying to fathom the complex layers of challenges was like looking through a fogged window on a cold day. Our son was not developing on a typical track, and finding effective ways to understand and help him took long, frustrating, heartache-filled years.
            And there he was, looking at the world from the other side of the blurred glass. Sensory overload and undefined neurological challenges left him fumbling in a “normal world” that his system couldn’t easily navigate.
            It often did—and sometimes still does—feel like we are trapped on opposite sides of a glass barrier. Years of chipping away at physical ailments and unraveling mysteries of “being wired differently” have brought our connection through the clouded window into better focus.
            Through years of hard work and unconditional love, we communicate with incremental improvements. I don’t know that our family will ever escape the hazy boundaries of autism, but our misty window connections have generated a special love that we wouldn’t otherwise know.
            This week’s Hike Notes brings visitors to San Francisco’s treasured Conservatory of Flowers, a historical landmark in Golden Gate Park. Even on a cold, rainy day, the Conservatory of Flowers offers a misty escape among tropical plants in vintage architecture.
            Please feel free to share. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photos! Check the Home page for the broader background story. Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. 
            The list of hikes is getting long! Please check the Quick View Hike List or scroll down the main Hikes page to see the current list of hike notes.
New this week:
Hike Notes 88: Conservatory of Flowers

Through Dark Woods Wandering
            Many of us think of life as being linear. We go from point A to point B to point C. Yet time and experience are more multi-dimensional than we recognize.
            Though trails also have a linear aspect to them, they often twist and turn. They fade, they narrow. Overgrown vines and fallen trees block the way. Heavy rains make an easy path hard or impossible to follow.
            One trail crosses another. They separate, then intersect again further down the line.
            On rare occasions, we find a bright stretch of trail so straightforward we can move ahead in auto-mode.
            Yet trouble spots inevitably appear. We wander into what feel like endlessly darkening passages. Sunlight doesn’t cut past dense foliage, even at noon. 
            But eventually the heavy tree cover breaks, revealing bright greens and yellows ahead, patches of white clouds and blue sky above.
            Dark, moody paths have their own special beauty, even if they feel a little spooky and unsettling.
            No matter how gloomy a patch of forest may feel, there is usually a bright turn ahead.
            This week’s Hike Notes, Interior Green Belt-Mount Sutro, leads hikers on the woodsy winding paths of Mount Sutro. All but one of my Mount Sutro walks were on chilly, dark days. The gray foggy moments are as uniquely charming as when sunshine battles through the trees to the trail underfoot.
            Please feel free to share. If you’re not able to take one of these Northern California hikes, hopefully you can enjoy the photos! Check the Home page for the broader background story. Click Insights/Hike Update News for inspiring reflections. 
            The list of hikes is getting long! Please check the Quick View Hike List or scroll down the main Hikes page to see the current list of hike notes.
New this week:
Hike Notes 87: Interior Green Belt-Mount Sutro