Leap Day!

Yes, it's Leap Day and I feel I should make some kind of leap--physical or metaphorical. But I'm too tired to make a physical leap. 

We just got back from a wild weekend in Los Angeles where we had a gathering of two families who were united by a wedding. Lots of staying up late and having fun--such a burden.

The wedding was between Wes's cousin's daughter Karina and a really nice man named Rickie. They were already quietly married in November on the beach in Mexico.  So this weekend was a big celebration of that small ceremony.

Friday the two families met at an Italian restaurant. There were lots of children and 20--40 year olds, so lots of crazy fun energy.

Saturday was a homey lunch for a few of us given by the the mother-of-the-bride at her place in Venice. Delicious food, beautiful weather. Everyone talked, listened and laughed. Very low-key, shorts and flip-flops. (None of the women wore the Fashion Grimace which is that pinched look you get from Spanx and high heels.) Then Saturday night was the big blow-out reception with fabulous food, drink and dancing. And grimacing. 

Not me of course. I wore completely unfashionable peep-toe, patent leather sling-back flats that I've had since 1997.

Then we caught a plane back to Seattle just in time to watch the Oscars with dear, old friends.

So where am I going with this? What is the leap? 

Well, last night I had this dream: 
 

I am taking a friend to show her a house. I say, “This is where I lived for a while. This is where I learned to say, ‘F**k you. I’m taking my own path. Blessings upon you.’ It’s important that you say all three." I tell her.  "You can’t just say, ‘F**k you.’ You always need to say all three, especially ‘Blessings upon you.’” 

So maybe the leap is an interpretive one about the meaning of this dream. Here goes: the first part of life, it's easy to just say, "F**k you," and leave--a job, a relationship, a living situation. 

Then we learn that instead of just running away, it's more important to move toward something, toward our own truth. Hence, "I'm taking my own path."

And finally, as we move toward our own paths, our truth, we want to leave behind nothing but love and kindness. Therefore, "Blessings upon you."

So perhaps the "leap" is that in 30 years of knowing Wes's family and our Oscar watching friends, I see that discovering our truths and our paths is an ongoing thing for everyone. It's not just the domain of newlyweds or the recent college graduates.  

But perhaps for those of us who have been around for a while, it's a little bit easier to get to, "Blessings upon you." We don't like the way it feels to just say, "F**k you." It's like an internal Fashion Grimace: we feel pinchy and pained. 

I'll write another Leap Post in four years (God willing). So let me just say, "Leap boldly. And blessings upon you."