Overwhelmance

Overwhelmance: noun.  1.  a state of being overwhelmed by abundance, generally characterized by a failure to recognize one's own good fortune.  May be seasonal in nature, i.e., common in the fall, coinciding with harvest.  2.  a condition common amongst the entrepreneurial and talented, facilitated by advances in modern technology and typified by a sense of having too many opportunities.  3. the modern tendency to over-commit, then complain about it;  the romance of being overwhelmed. First known use: 11/6/2010.

Walking in the woods is a deep comfort. It's like sex, actually. Every time, afterward, I say to myself, damn, this is basically always possible, why don't I do this more often, why don't I do this every day?

Such a deep comfort to be outside.

I derive so much bone-level satisfaction from being surrounded by the evidence of all of the other mysterious little lives, turning over rocks and touching salamanders, wondering who left all of those gnawed acorns at the base of that tree, watching crows and hummingbirds, trying in vain to engage squirrels in conversation [i can get them to stop and stare at me, come closer, but the communication breaks off before we get past the pleasantries...].

I need it.

So much that's simple and basic and obvious occurs to me as I'm tramping along, like the overwhelmance above.  It helps that I read something great that Samin wrote on 11/4 just before I walked out the door.  I was feeling simultaneously inspired and solidly in my resolve to simplify, slow down, look around, enjoy.  Walking up the trail I realized how lucky we really are, that we have so much capacity, and how that places us firmly on the path toward both greatness and burn-out unless we can constantly practice viveka, discernment.

Oh, how truly lucky we are to be in this time and space, in each other's company.  Even if the squirrels won't really talk back.  ;>