Exhilaration

Morning, 5 am up and head off to work, dark, windy, bluster rain. Back home 4.30 p.m. Just in time to take one of the dogs for a walk. Head back across the Fraser River (sometimes I feel my life is just a series of crossings, back and forth over the mighty Fraser River), then dash across the Matsqui flats to the Trans Canada Trail which follows the river along the dike.

Out we get. Walk up to the dike and get hit in the face by a stiff cold wind coming off the water. I tug my toque over my ears and head east. Behind me, there is blue sky and sunshine, a cause for exhilaration all by itself.

Felix, our German Short Haired Pointer, and me are all alone on the dike. Felix goes on his lead for some training. He has difficulty with the word “Sit” though he is doing well with halt, stay, and heel. Tonight he seems to have mastered “sit”. I pat myself on the back. Once we get past the farm with the horses, (Felix is not sure about horses yet), I let him lose to tear off along the dike.

He loves to run. Just watching his excitement, his utter abandonment to the joy of running is heart healthy. By now its 5 p.m. and dusk fall.

We are alone in the world, well not quite. Off in a field to our right a flock of snow geese chatter with their odd honking call back and forth with some ducks on a pond a little further away. But all the other animals are snug in their barns for the night.

When we make our turned to come back, the wind is whipping up. The trees moan and sway in the wind. Two bald eagles take to the air to investigate our presence on their turf.

The sky is spectacular. As I walk, I can see the dome of the world bending toward the far western horizon. That sense or awareness of the curvature of the earth pulls you away from your body. The air is fresh in my lungs.

Already below the horizon, the sun splashes pale gold along the horizon. Bands of low grey clouds streak away from the sun in long, longitudinal lines. The geese, disturbed by Felix’s nearby wandering, take to the air. Against the deepening gloom you can just make out several white v-lines of their flight against the hills, brooding under lowering clouds brushed with every shade of grey in the palate.

The sight lends itself to canvas and paint, rather than paper and words.

The wind is biting now. My cheeks are tightening with the cold. Night is coming on all around us. On the ridges to the northwest in Mission a band of lights from warm homes, appear like a gold necklace. The river on my right runs like molten pewter.

Exhilaration lifts my mood, takes me to a place of vast tranquility. Nature puts on a stunning, awesome show as my reward for our little adventure.

I learn exhilaration is not frenetic, but rather a calm out rushing of joy. Moments like this attest to the grandeur and beauty of life. Without a witness, this sight would carry no emotion at all. Is this who we are? The witnesses. Our struggle to articulate in any form, the vision we see.

What a different picture I experience tonight than the one which jumps out from the TV screen, filled with all our baser passions, of murder and hate, and inhumanity.

Does urban/suburban living deprive us of a chance to witness? Perhaps we witness too little, lacking the chance to feel the immensity of just this one small planet in a universe of giants. We close up our windows and bar our doors, crank up the heat while looking through a different kind of magic window that lets us roam the world, with the leaking fear that instead of a world far away, war is just beyond out barricaded door.

We hurry, Felix and me, through the descending eve, alone in a vast and stormy world which creates within me a sense of my own immensity, where the boundaries of who I am extend far beyond the confines of my body. I touch the sky, smell the aromas of the wind, and taste the inky viscous tang of the river. I blaze like the sun.

In the gloom, the car takes shape. I push a button on my key fob; a light comes up in the car. I pull the back door open for the dog, then hop into the drivers seat and relish the warmth and the soft glow of the overhead light.

Four chicken breasts await my attention when I get home. I create the dish as I drive inspired by our walk…. exhilarated.

Chicken Recipe

Here is what I created for supper.

What You Need

4 boneless chicken breasts (try to buy farm raised chicken, better taste, less chemicals).

2 sliced Onions

3 fat cloves of garlic bruised and chopped

1-2 tablespoons of honey

1 eggplant peeled and cut in cubes

1 red pepper ½ inch dice

I teaspoon of cinnamon

½ pound of fresh green beans cut into one-inch lengths

Salt and pepper for seasoning the chicken

1 hot red pepper, sliced thinly then chopped into small dice. Wear gloves if you have sensitivities, wash hands well.

¼ to ½ cup of extra virgin olive oil

I 28oz can of Italian Plum Tomatoes

How to Throw it Together

Heat enough olive oil to cover the bottom of a large sauté pan. Heat the oil until it ripples. It needs to be very hot. Season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, thyme, if you have it, brown in the sauté pan. Once brown on both sides, remove the chicken to a plate, and set aside. If you need to add a little more oil here do so, the eggplant will suck it up. Once the oil is hot, again add the onions and eggplant. Stir to brown the onions and egg plant. You’ll wonder where all the olive oil has gone. Cook on medium high stirring to prevent sticking for about 5 minutes, and then add the tomatoes, beans, red pepper, hot pepper, cinnamon, honey, and garlic plus the chicken breasts. Let it all come back to a boil, then turn down to medium and cover and cook for 20-25 minutes stirring occasionally. Taste, season. Serve in pasta bowls, putting one breast in the bottom of the bowl then covering with the sauced vegetables. Grill some good crusty bread, rub with garlic, smoother in olive oil and dust with sea salt.

Exhilaration!