One day in June, after a day of scraping paint off the side of the old farm house at The Mill Pond, of caulking holes and spreading wood putty, of beginning to apply the primer to the side of the house - finally! - I was cleaning the paint brushes at the water spigot.
There are three water spigots near the farm house. I went to the one next to the garden because I knew it had a bottle of dish soap that I could use to wash the paint brushes. I opened the spigot, water began to flow and I started to clean the brushes, adding soap to the bristles and working it in. Soap a little, work it in a little, rinse a little, repeat. Soon the brushes were clean and I began to shake the water out like I remember my Dad doing when I was younger. Using big downward arm strokes, I shook the water out of the brushes onto the ground. Over and over. Swish. Swish. Swish.
And then it happened. I remember birds singing and the swish of the water leaving the brush. But that was all.
And I stopped. And time stopped. And I allowed myself to just be completely aware. And for a moment I was completely overwhelmed with Peace. Yes, Peace with a capital P. It was the kind of peace that when I talked about it later, it unexpectedly brought me to tears.
You can read more about The Mill Pond
here. Jim's posts about becoming a friend of time are particularly of interest, as this was the topic and theme during our recent visit. I think it had a significant impact on me and my relationship with time. I know that it was, in part, why my moment at the water spigot was so memorable.
May you find a moment of Peace today.
~Jen
