On the road

This photo was taken earlier this week (by my friend Ronelle Rust) "on the
road from Malmesbury (in the Western Cape), coming into the silos". It does
something to me emotionally...it makes me yearn for the open road and wide
open spaces. Also for the quality of light that I know is found there, also
in the Karoo.

Oceanic blue

A friend - another Charles - that I've never physically met (we 'met' on the 'Net about over two years ago), keeps in pretty good communication with me via text messages. Through him, with him, I travel to places just on the edge of my radar screen. Places that fill me with longing, and contentment. Like the Southern Cape Coast, and in stark contrast, the Klein Karoo. Both of which I never tire of returning to.
He is, right now, down at Struisbaai on the Southern Cape coast. This was his text message to me at just after 6am this morning:

"Last night was lovely,with constant laughter with my friend Jay. We're going to look for bones and shells. And there is this place, just outside Struisbaai, with the most majestic magnificent white sand dunes. I love early mornings here. I'm still lying in bed, feeling Pantoufle's kittens move inside her stomach. Oh my wow. Have a blessed day¤"

Pantoufle is Charles' very pregnant cat. He's adamant to be with her when she gives birth.
I have a longing to be drawing upon the mighty Ocean's energy, also to imbibe deep breaths of salt-laden fresh air, to gulp in the wind, to feel sea sand massage and even the skin of my feet.

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Quiet time with coffee

'Round about this time on most days, when I've got rectangular eyes from my laptop screen and can no longer think straight, it's time to hit the N4 and to travel the approximately 20 or so kilometres to the Seattle coffee shop at Millys, just the other side of Machadodorp, on the way to Belfast.

Here, through the three dimensional lens (yes!) of a tall cafe mocha (no cream) I make sense of today, yesterday and sometimes tomorrow. Today, just before getting into my car to travel home I took this photo facing the sunset as I gave thanks for the day.

There's an unusual not-quite-chill on the air: the leaves are turning, they are falling from the maples, the sun is setting earlier, birds are packing up home and heading north. I'm looking forward to a time of much less light, hibernation, rest and contemplation. I'm ready for the winter.

Tomorrow, while researching the book, I head down the N4 and past Nelspruit and on to Komatipoort and the Mozambique border. Especially after Nelspruit, relatively unchartered territory for me, I want to take in as much of that heavy-with-history road just south of the Kruger National Park, and to the eastern edge of the country - especially the Lebombo mountains that triangulates Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa.

On Friday I'm expecting to fly to George and then, at the ocean's very edge in Mossel Bay and with my beloved Klein Karoo at my back, write up the parts of the book already researched... and again seek guidance and inspiration beneath the St. Blaize lighthouse.