Thursday, March 3, 2011

Cause and Effect


Splendid sparkles on the reflecting pool west of the Capitol. That cool shape in the background is the Indian Museum.

It was gorgeous yesterday, warm with a nice breeze. So I walked - of course! It was a nice, long walk all over the national mall, downtown, then home again. And yeah I was sneezing a little bit, my eyes itched. I had the presence of mind to buy some Claritin, pop one. But of course I kept walking. At the conclusion of winter, especially this past winter which was so cold, seemed so long, it was glorious to stretch my legs, connect with the uprushing energy of spring (the trees are going to pop any day), listen to the birds.

Ahhhhh ...

Unbeknownst to me, even though nothing has bloomed, spring pollens were on the move, riding the wave of that sweet breeze somewhat in the same way that I travel to Zone 10. Hmmm. The grains of pollen landed in my hair, on my clothes, found their way into my eyes and of course I inhaled them in great, ecstatic gulps of air. Towards the end of my walk, things took a turn for the worse. Last evening I spent a lot of time blowing my nose, way more time than I would have preferred.

One thing I continue to be baffled by is my body's resistence to the magic of pollen. My immune system considers the powerful life force of springtime to be an enemy of great proportion. My immune system thinks spring pollens are toxic.

It's an odd quirk of body/mind/spirit - a conflict - a big problem. I have acupuncture and herbal teas and Claritin, homeopathic remedies, yeah yeah. Nothing I do completely resolves this inner conflict, however. A sneezing shaman? It ain't right, I tell you! It ain't right.


Rising on some invisible spiral of energy, these sea gulls whirled in circles above the Capitol just as I walked past, then landed again on the water in the reflecting pool, as if nothing had happened. Very cool.

16 comments:

ellen abbott said...

tree pollen. trees are so sneaky, sending tons of pollen into the air from their little almost invisible flowers.

the daffodils are about done here.

The Bug said...

I woke up this morning sneezing. And with a zit on my chin (I think I've mentioned this to about 10 people already today). I considered both things to be a personal insult on my birthday. And why does a 47 year old get zits? Might be all those Girl Scout cookies I've been eating...

Reya Mellicker said...

Bug, it's just wrong!

A Concerned Citizen said...

I started feeling the trees, allergenically speaking, about two weeks ago, and yesterday was *horrible.* I cooked my first batch of anti-allergy herbs from our favorite Sufi acupuncturist this morning. I'll be interested to see how they work.

I've always thought that allergies just ain't right, period, b/c they invariably flare up during what otherwise are the most beautiful times of year here in DC.

Jo said...

Such cool photos! Great shot of the gulls, who were evidently as ecstatic about the weather as you.

I happen to think that "The Sneezing Shaman" is a great nickname...kind of like "The Galloping Gourmet", and who didn't love Graham Kerr?

So go ahead and let your body overreact once in a while. You are the coolest head around...every so often, something's gotta give.

jeanette from everton terrace said...

The sneezing shaman - ha, still making me laugh. Perhaps it could be one of your monikers :)

This time of year is torture for me. I go outside and I feel like everything is closing up, my throat, ears and eyes and it's strange because I think why am I closing when everything else is opening. My mother and daughter are the same.
Love that image of the birds just floating.

Reya Mellicker said...

The sneezing shaman - definitely not the coolest of heads. Dang, man.

Elizabeth said...

Dirt therapy really works!
I'm sorry about the wretched pollen problem and have no solutions.....except maybe just to dive into it and sneeze and sneeze etc.......
so glad to be back in Blogworld after being slightly out of the loop
love ya

Linda Sue said...

I guess that is one thing about the incessant rain here- keeps pollen under control and that is the best thing I can say at the moment about the rain.

Bee said...

I ADORE the picture of the sea gulls. That rising energy affects me so powerfully . . . I love spring beyond any other season. But I don't seem to be negatively affected by pollen (lucky, huh?). Hope you find the right "alignment" (of drugs and nature?). xx

steven said...

reya - i love watching gulls - heck, any bird - work the thermals. i source that out on reading jonathon livingston seagull when i was in my early teens . . . ""to begin with" he said heavily, "you've got to understand that a seagull is an unlimited idea of freedom, an image of the great gull, and your whole body, from wingtip to wingtip, is nothing more than your thought itself." oh yeah!!!! steven

Anonymous said...

You've gone from freezin' to sneez'n!

Reya Mellicker said...

Pam - ha!! You're so funny!!

Steven, oh yeah. We were just talking about Richard Bach last night. Love that timing!!

mouse (aka kimy) said...

gesundheit!

Murr Brewster said...

Ah, you took me back to my childhood (in Arlington). I never had a problem with pollen, but the poison ivy had my number and I don't miss the mosquitoes AT all. Beautiful photos.

Pauline said...

Bless you! ;)