4/2/2013. - Day 7 - Curiosity in Seattle.

4/2/2013. - Day 7 - Curiosity in Seattle.

"Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop."

This seems so simple and yet as humans we at times find this the hardest instruction ever. This trip is, in a way, my beginning, or rather the beginning of a new story. In this chapter, I write purposefully the plot, and carefully select the characters who will partake in each scene. This is my life, or at least a section of it. And this is the journey I take as I am learning to write a better story. At the end of this chapter, the story isn't over; rather, another will begin. But when it comes to an end, I will stop. When you come across something wonderful, a relationship, an opportunity, or a once in a lifetime experience, seize it. Explore it and relish in it and enjoy it fully. And when it's time to let go, when it's over or your time together has come to an end, let go gracefully. Stop. One of my favorite quotes from Buddha says this,“In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.” It's easy at the end of each chapter to want to hold on, add an extended ending, or go back and rewrite, but that's not how life is lived. Go purposely through your chapters, and when they wind down, welcome the new opportunities that await you on the next page. 

Today is the day we have set aside for Seattle exploration. This is the first day since my arrival to Washington that it has been overcast, and the morning has quite a subdued and gloomy feel to it. We commandeer Scott’s vehicle and set off for the city. Kristen first takes me to Puget Sound for some sightseeing and pizza. We have a great view of the city skyline during lunch, and then make our way towards the space needle.

The clouds hang in the sky throughout the early afternoon as we work our way through the attractions surrounding the space needle and contemplate the fee for the Chihuly garden and glass sculptures. 

Kristen is the ultimate budget manager, thankfully, so we pass on Chihuly and settle for glimpses of the ornate art through the bushes. After navigating the parking lot, which turned out to be some sort of trickery due to the exit being completely concealed, we moved onto Pioneer Square. We double teamed the parallel parking effort and successfully docked the car so we could stroll and see more of the sights, and who are we kidding, the SHOPS! 

We steered in the direction of Pike Place Market, the Great Wheel, and Ye Olde Curiosity Shop. The market was abuzz with tons of unique items, local artists, fresh fish, people from all walks of life conversing and mulling about, and beautiful spring flowers. We selected a fragrant bouquet with colorful daffodils and large pink tulips and moved on to Starbucks, store zero.

It was then down to the Curiosity Shop, where I was awed, amazed, and disturbed by the display contained within. As we made our way back to the car, Kristen sabotaged our healthful intentions with a detour into the candy store where we filled our crisp paper bags with gummies, taffy, caramels, and other pieces of sugary joy. I have never in my life been to a candy store, and probably took a little too much liberty in filling my bag with what I considered to be a "reasonable" amount. 

We left the candy shop and proceeded to gorge ourselves on our spoils while we sat on the pier and watched the brave souls up on the Great Wheel. Around and around they went, with the wheel rotating over the bay while the lights flashed a bright green and blue from the enormous metal structure. We passed on taking a ride ourselves, but did stumble upon a carousel next. Now is a good time to mention I harbor an intense love of carousels.

The music, the lights, the carnival-like atmosphere—the whole nostalgic feeling that comes with watching the glowing faces of children as they ride around (or my face as I ride around)—I love it. We watched awhile and then headed home. We raced Scott home to see who had to make dinner and sadly, the girls lost, even with access to the carpool lane. Of course we had leftovers from Easter, and this was beyond satisfying since Scott’s mom was the original chef. 

I’m excited for tomorrow, as we've been discussing the route for an epic bike trip and I can’t wait to get behind those handlebars.