Tag: renewal

Spa Day, etc.

We checked into the amazing Spa at JW Marriott in North Las Vegas this morning. Very attentive and nice people took care of us. Nicki headed off to her “Sampler” massage – a variety of treatments and aromatherapy that left her feeling good. In the meantime I headed to the outdoor hydrotherapy pools and jacuzzi. There were multiple stations in the pool with various levels of jetted, roiling water. One was strong like a firehose, nearly pulling my swimsuit off! While they may be optional, I opt to keep mine on! Others focused on different areas – legs, back, or shoulders– and one was pouring overhead with great force. Made my scalp all tingly! It was all so good.

There was a float pool as well as a hot-cold jacuzzi- get in the hot one then move to the cold one, and back again. There was a sauna and a steam room. That was great for relaxation. And there was a waterfall shower that was AMAZING. It poured down with such force I think it may have released the boulders in my shoulders!

It was then time for my treatment – a holistic massage. I was covered in eucalyptus and spearmint oils then scrubbed with salt. It felt and smelled so good! Then I was sent to the shower and returned for an all over rub down with lavender and Epsom salts in little bags. Then a deep massage into my gnarly muscles. Oh my goodness it was so good! 80 blissful minutes of health and healing!

In the meantime Nicki was steaming and using the jacuzzi and we met up for a round in hydrotherapy again. And more steam room. And citrus water and tea, oranges and lots of water. We decided to spend the day there so we ordered lunch from the hotel and they brought us soup, salad and sandwiches to the spa. We laid outside in the cool but sunny deck and fell asleep, got a little sunburned even! The palm trees and ponderosa pines made a beautiful backdrop.

We showered and used blow dryers and all kinds of lotions and shampoos and even mouthwash. They thought of everything and we enjoyed several hours of relaxation, rest, and renewal.

We left and went out for coffee in a mall in Summerlin. We shopped and walked around Living Spaces where Nicki works. So much to see there!

We came back to the apartment to rest up before dinner. I got a call from Whatcom Art Market that two of my creations sold! That was exciting!

We decided to Uber to the strip for dinner. Such a nice guy drove us. We got out at the Venetian walked into Palazzo. We had one of the best dinners ever at The Lux Cafe. Beef Wellington melts in your mouth! And our waiter was a Brazilian man, so that made Nicki happy! He was a good waiter too! Definitely going to eat there again!

We wandered through the shops and found a stunning Art Gallery at the Venetian Hotel. Some of the most truly beautiful photography in the world. Wis I could post it here but no cameras allowed. Here are a few of mine, though! .

Going to bed with a full tummy, happy spirits and rejuvenated bodies! We are so blessed. Thank you Lord.

©Belindabotzong2019

On The Market

Multiple Listing Service realtor agreement signed

Cleaning ladies did their best

Sisters worked like Hercules to clear the last of the “stuff” – remnants of a life

The listing posted and a bittersweet flood washed over me. As usual I have two roles in this whole business. On one hand I am called The Estate Manager- what used to be The Executor (feels like executioner) of The Estate. I have decisions to make. I have things to do. I have papers to sign and records to keep. I have rules to follow and jobs to finish. I am, as The Estate Manager, detached from my other role. The grieving daughter, the heir of the residue, the former caretaker/caregiver, of my first best friend.

There is no way to describe certain feeling and emotions except that it rolls like a tide- sometimes gently ebbing and flowing, a little misty maybe. Sometimes crashing like a tidal wave drowning my soul in tears.

This process is at times extremely frustrating. The waiting. The expectations. The bitterness. The disagreements. The pressure. The loss. The duties. The longing.

Yesterday was a day of frustration. I had to go to the bank for a couple things. There was the deposit from the estate sale. It wouldn’t go through without some glitch because it’s an estate account and it hadn’t been used yet. Then there was the mortgage payment. Fiasco. When I got frustrated and said “I just want to pay the damn mortgage”, the little fella told me not to use such language. Hahahahaha. Does he have any idea the language of this world? Not to excuse myself but in the past month I’ve had angry patients call me everything but a white woman (as my mother would say) as they, in their own distress, used profanity to cope with their own issues.

After much back and forth with the account I finally got the mortgage paid and left with a handshake with my new friend Ruan.

And then the realtor announced the listing on Redfin. And it washed over me. And I pray that a sweet family, a brilliant entrepreneur, or a group of people who just need a place to live, see that and decide it’s the perfect place for them. They can’t see the Chilean fire tree in bloom that will knock their socks off in spring. They don’t see the labor that went into the recent updates or the prior updates. They don’t see the pride she had at being a homeowner as a widow with five children. But I hope they see their future as being blessed by their own proud purchase and that they will fill it with their own collections and memories and tastes in decor.

I sent the Casa Brothers a message. They are the Realtor/Estate Sale team who have done such a great job through this ordeal. I have an idea for a new reality show with them as the stars — :

Hi guys

I just thought up a new reality show and you guys could be the stars— like property brothers except with the estate sale twist.. Casa Brothers – and the drama part would be the family melt downs and such that happens as people grieve and move thru the process of parents dying.

The vision is to my end — “save the adult children” from all the STUFF accumulated by the person who passed.

I think this is an idea that would resonate with this generation as all the baby boomers start passing and leaving the minimalist generation upcoming with all this stuff to dispose of.

I’m calling Hollywood .. get your makeup team together and get ready to be a star!!!!

Have a beautiful day
©Belindabotzong2018

Day 6 cont. Israel 2018

After another generous buffet breakfast we headed out – me with a runny nose and beginnings of a cold. That’s when it’s good to be traveling with Savannah, who has tinctures and remedies! Double dosed on elderberry tincture and lozenges.

We left the Sea of Galilee behind and headed to the River Jordan. Several people in our group of 35 decided to get baptized. As our fearless leader Yonathon is Jewish he found a pastor from one of the many groups and he did the dunking. A majority were catholic so I think they have never had an immersion. Next to us was a group of Brazilians who were very vocal and singing and shouting with each of their baptisms. It was quite a joyous occasion. The river was a beautiful emerald green and quite beautiful.

This is not the same place where John baptized Jesus. The river in that area is more like a ditch and full of sediment so the place we stopped is an organized place where there is a place to rent a white robe and towel and they issue certificates. Savannah and I washed our feet in the river.

At a gift shop I got honey for Nicki and date palm syrup for me and a bag of coffee for my hubby.

After this was all finished we headed to an area with Roman ruins dating back to BC. It was only uncovered in the 1980s and has the public bath house, amphitheater and bathrooms.

It was really hot today- up around 90. The air is dry and it gets quite difficult for some of our older travelers to walk around. But they are hanging in there!

We then traveled south along the border with Jordan and into the West Bank. You cross checkpoints going out but not coming in. We were waved through without any issues. We stopped in a place where the Dead Sea scrolls were discovered. We watched a brief film and went out to see the caves where they were first found by a 14 year old boy.

We continued south and the change in terrain became stunning. Huge, massive piles of rock mountains that look like they could crumble with just a sneeze. Miles and miles along the Dead Sea with the only real vegetation being acres of date palms. We saw the mount of temptation where Jesus was tested by Satan. We saw the caves in the mountains where David and Saul hid from one another.

We finally arrived at Herrods resort right on the Dead Sea. Just in time to get to our spa service we had ordered. Mine was a full body salt scrub and Massage followed by a jacuzzi tub soak. It was amazing. Savannah had a mud wrap and Massage.

It got too late to go float in the sea so we will arise at 5 tomorrow and go straight down to the beach before we take off for Jerusalem at 8.

Now we have eaten from another stunning buffet dinner with a huge population from Ukraine and Europe staying here as well. Our hotel is beautiful and luxurious and now I’m so sleepy I can’t say any more today!

I can’t add pics as WiFi is slow but trust me // it’s all amazing!!

©Belindabotzong2018

Such is Life

Life – Family – Relationships

Changes

Theirs – Moving forward

His- Stagnant

Hers- Ending

Theirs – Exciting

Hers – Adventurous

His – Struggling

Hers – Suffering

A cycle of plans, dreams, hopes, hopelessness, loss, opportunity, future, past

Youth, newlyweds, bachelors, middle aged couple, elderly woman

Change

Changing jobs, changing locations, sticking it out, sticking together, changing

Loss

Loss of health, mobility, power, choices

Grief, loss, joyous celebrations

–

Time

Mundane days, restless nights

nights filled with passion

days filled with tears

moments filled with laughter

–

Cycles

One turns into the other

–

What’s next is set in motion

–

Decisions, disagreements, consensus, conflict, forgiveness, best wishes, farewells, condolences

Life

Hard, challenging, rich, beautiful

Death

Real, crushing, freeing, liberating

–

Victory

Welcome Back Autumn

The winds of change are blowing

Leaves tumble and twirl in delight

Autumn arrives with a wet kiss on summer’s cheek

Refreshing the earth, the air, my soul

Days darken sooner with a refreshing coolness

Night lingers longer with a crispness in the morning breeze

Welcome back Autumn!

©Belindabotzong2018

I Saw Myself

I saw myself today

30 years ago a newlywed

In that cabin across the river

Where I sat for hours watching the currents sweep over the boulders

Time spent with my lover in solitude and adventure with dreams of the future and contented pleasure.

I saw myself today

20 years ago a mom of two hilarious children

Camped out on the floor in that cabin across the river

A family on vacation, swimming hole, and fishing poles

A walk to the gingerbread factory, the hat shop and the toy store ending with a German pretzel and dinner at the Baren Haus.

I saw myself today

In the present

Reflected in a store window

Shopping and thinking and exploring

Years of child-raising replaced by caring for my elderly mom

Picking wildflowers and pine cones and creating new things in my head

A time of respite and renewal, observing the changes that have taken place and those things that never change.

I saw myself today

20 years from now

Walking hand in hand with the same man I always loved

Coming to a light pole in the sidewalk with hands temporarily parting

Quickly rejoined to explore that same town we always have, getting bratwurst, walking to Blackbird Island, and talking about the years gone by

I saw myself today

30 years in the future

My white hair askew as a caregiver pushes me, donned in a royal purple bathrobe in a wheelchair down the Main Street

Past the horse and buggy, past the shops and restaurants

A pile of flowers and ornamental grasses on my lap gleaned from the passing displays and gardens

A smile on my face in memory of days gone by.

©Belindabotzong2018

Layers

Multi layered,

Multi faceted

Unseen layers

Private thoughts

Personal goals

Hopes and dreams

—

Hidden layers

Hurt and loss

Grief and memories

Love and hate and passions subdued

—

Intricate layers

Ideas and inspirations

Fears and triumphs

Aspirations and ideals

—

Outer layer

Designed and scarred

Unique and beautiful

Ingrained with the fingerprint of God the creator

Infusion of experiences and life

Inner strength and grace

Outer beauty, calm and peaceful

Protecting the inner layers like an armor

Allowing beauty and love and compassion to flow out

Sanity Returns

Muddled vision blurred by irrational thoughts and ideas replaced with sparkling Clarity

The gears slow to an even rhythm

The whirring and whizzing of rapidly changing thoughts reach a steady state

Rapid fire words and reactions and emotions ride an even keel of tempered conversations and deep thought

Images and frequencies normalize into reality

Like dials in a sound booth the knobs of medication and sleep and therapy fine tune and gradually remove the static and noise

The artifacts of stimulation and simulation and wild random churning waves are refined into coherent and rational thoughts and ideas

Turning the corner. Changing the tidal wave of anger and betrayal into deep loving gracious waves of thankfulness

We all breathe deeply again

Tension releases

Eggshells are swept away

Gracious forgiveness

Sanity Returns

Praise God

©Belindabotzong2018

Tired

Grief and loss tired

So tired

Weary to the bone

Heavily burdened

Heavy hearted

Thoughts scattered

Forget to breathe

Worn out fatigue

Insomnia tired

—-

Healthy tired

Worked hard

Worked out

Exhilaration subsiding tired

Muscles tight and sore

Sleep deep and restored

—

Sleepy tired

Too much food tired

Heavy eyelids

Foggy brain

Need a nap tired

—-

Sandman take me away tired

Heavy eyelids

Fighting for one more moment of wakefulness

Fluttering into dreamland

—–

““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11:28‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.””

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭33:14‬

©belindabotzong2018