peter brierton

Jan 6, 202312 min read

Day 43. What Kind of Cereal are You?

Monday February 20, 2023. Morro Strands Beach, California

Today I could tell the sun was on the tent before my eyes opened! I could sense the brightness through my eyelids and feel the warmth of it penetrating the tent walls already. It brought a smile to my face as I woke up and no conscious effort was needed to be grateful...it was already there!

Zipped open the tent and flipped my legs out onto the ladder to have a look at the Morro Bay water pounding just over the dune. A gentle salty breeze, a blue sky and that surf sound that no sound machine can ever accurately replicate sweetly landed on my senses. Is there anything better than this? Not sure I could ever live far from this view wow! Well I guess I could...but why would ya!? Something about the beach is in my blood I guess. This goes back to an earlier blog where I talked about my heritage being part Mexican due to my love of warm beachy weather. And Tacos. And Marg's : ) But I also realized on this trip that I need to add Reggae to my heritage too. Thats a nation right? Regganian. Just south of the Delta Blues nation I think.

Luv me some of that music wow. I wonder what the Reggae national anthem would be? Gotta be a Bob Marley song for sure. Hmmm maybe one of the Three Little Birds he wrote about was a duck? Might be on to something here. I'll have to chew on that a bit. I bet if I dug far enough too I'd probably find a Marley in my family tree somewhere for sure.

I took in another deep, conscious, smile enhanced breath of gratefulness for being alive and having made it across the country. Looked out over the water and let that emotion swirl around inside my chest for a bit...

Before I call and order down from this upstairs bedroom for my five star breakfast of dry cereal and warm water I changed into my bathing suit. I'm not sure if I'll go swimming but I'll be prepared anyway. I snuck down the ladder, headed to the beach, and put these duck toes in the sand again. I really should dunk myself in the surf for a morning bath - but I convinced myself that I didn't want to get in the way of all the surfers that beat me out here this morning. It's not that I'm cold or anything. Nah. Nothing to do with the fact that it's barely forty degrees out and the water is just a smidgen higher than that. And I still have that "I just woke up" feel. Well, OK maybe I'm a little cold. I'm the brand of duck that flies south for the winter remember? There's lots of brands out there right? I don't think brand is the right word either. But man how many different types of fowl are there anyway? So many! Manufactured in all kinds of amazing colors and sizes too! I'm fowl for sure. Most guys are. Heck I haven't even showered now for like three days. I did dip though. In this cold water yesterday . Geez how do ducks just sit in that cold water all day? Wait...are there Jamaican ducks? Do they have ducks in Jamaica? Or do they just make those beautiful multi-colored birds down there? You know the ones with the bright yellows and reds and blues all mixed in. Like the way they paint the houses down in the islands. Or the way colors are mixed into some of those Mexican Ponchos. I have so many questions. But I might be on to something here in discovering my family tree too. I might have to do some swimming around the internet to nail down my checkered poncho past : )

Anyway these surfers are carving up some really cool waves just offshore here wow.

Must be fifteen or so right here...spread apart enough to not interfere with each other.

They make it look easy too. Surfers know how to marry their humanness to the natural power and beauty of the waves don't they? They're not taming the waves, or taking advantage of them in any superior way. No - the surfers kind of become one with them, they flow with them, they respect the ocean and all that it contains and that mindset is manifested in the artful way they carve. Great metaphor for life isn't it? Ride the wave. Can't fight them right?Even when they sink low...there's another one coming...better to just flow with it.

The key? Don't identify with the wave. Or the trough. Life is constantly in flux so don't get stuck or try and hold onto either one!

Geez the waves are so much more powerful than we are. So pick one that looks good and give it a shot. Great way to live.

I scrunched my toes in the cool wet sand and took another deep breath until it felt right to leave all this behind. It's somewhat the end of the trip, being at the shore and all, but I'm not quite heading back east yet either. My cousin, Rigpa, is a buddhist monk down in LA and I'll head there to visit and spend the night. I said goodbye to the view and left the beach.

Back at the tent, Dave from across the way sat down with me while I downed some Wheat Chex. Dry of course. Not Dave, the cereal. Dave is energetic. He's more like Rice Krispies with milk on them. Pop full of life! Hey if you could define yourself as a cereal...what would it be? Are you Cheery-O? Or maybe closer to a cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs kinda person? I know some of ya and I would definitely put you in the Fruit Loop category for sure. Ha! And wait that's where I saw those colorful birds! Toucans right!? Do they have those in Jamaican? Whoa off track again sorry. Back to cereal. Maybe you are more of a Lucky Charm kinda person. I would like to be around that type for sure. And when things in life happen to you...when life pours 'stuff' down on you...do you just become all limp and soggy? Or do you pop full of life like Rice Krispies!? Ha! No worries - no polls or tests given here. Something to "chew" on though!

Anyway he spoke about a great cycling ride from Cambria to Paso de Robles where you can see the wine country and cattle along the roads. This is where I'm headed! Just not on a bike today. Not enough hours in the day! Sounds delicious though.

He wasn't wrong either...driving that way was gorgeous.

I pulled over in Cambria because the views were astounding. Not the actual Main Street area which had a cool, older town feel to it. I wouldn't move here but a long weekend could be in the cards. But just a mile down the road the shoreline was gorgeous and it had these paths along it with some nice looking rentals across the street. Lots of folk strolling along enjoying the view...couples and families mostly. Just an incredible view along the coast! Wary of the time I grabbed some photos and then moved on to make my way to Paso de Robles. I'm hoping to grab a coffee and maybe a nosh there. The Wheat Chex didn't quite cut it lol. Tell ya what - looking forward to a latte in the next town while driving is such a good motivator. It's fun too. Or maybe I'm addicted? Ya think? Maybe the caffeine? Probably gives an adrenaline boost to. I'm probably even addicted to the barista's company at this point. I could talk to a rock now. Or a rubber duck even. Which I do. Think I mentioned that already. Still doing it. Rubber ducks need love to right? I'm just doing it for him. And as long as I'm aware that he's not real I'm still OK. I think. It's when I ad-lib duck responses out loud that I should probably seek help right? Especially ones that sound like Donald Duck. Not that I did that. Least with anyone else in earshot.

So I hit Paso de Robles and its a cool town also! Not as hip as San Luis Obispo but it has this nice, walkable street vibe with great shops and a huge great lawn in the middle. Perfect for summer markets or shows and stuff I bet. There is a Spearhead Coffee shop that I stumble on, or in, or both lol. What I notice about the coffee shops around here is the younger crowd chilling at them. Mid to late teens, even early twenties with many of them sporting different hair colors. I mean like real purple and orange. Funny to me, it seems that would be more of a NY City vibe thing. A punk feel. Or maybe just a city thing. Where kids are trying to be different, experiment with loud colors and maybe just stand out from the crowd. But here in Cali it almost seems out of place for some reason? Probably just my surfer image of what I think all Californians are supposed to look like. There is a skateboard crowd vibe out here too so maybe it's mixed in with that? It's not bad or anything...just not what I expected!

Before I left Paso de Robles I stopped into a shop called Earth Tones right where I had parked to buy Rigpa a gift. The perfect store for a meditator! It has that Yoga, incense and peace-from-within vibe to all the gifts in it. It's on my heart to bring gifts to those that are taking time out of there lives to spend it with me. I didn't always get to do it but it's a gesture of gratitude for them! Totally blessed to have such warm friends in my life.

I bought some cookies in town also. Maybe for him. Maybe for me : )

I have time for another stop in San Luis Obispo! I really liked it there.

Along the way I passed a town called Santa Margarita! Or a sign for it anyway. Maybe they read the blog! Or maybe I should be checking this town out now lol!? Hold on can I turn this jeep around!? Funny how when you are on the highway doing 70mph by the time you make up your mind you can be a mile away right? Towns just fly by. OK lets put that one on the list for the next trip. I'll come back to blog about whether they prefer salt or no salt in the water that rims their bay : )

I parked myself at the same Scout Coffee in downtown San Luis Obispo that I rode the bike to yesterday. Ok, yes it's also the second latte of the day. Geez I'm allowed alright. That doesn’t happen often though, I’m a pretty amped up guy as it is lol. Definitely don’t need help there. If anything I need something to drain off some of the forty-mile bike ride energy that doesn’t get spent each day.

All the sidewalk seats were taken so I blogged for nearly an hour inside the coffee shop.

The only urgency to the day is to reach Rigpa in LA (that is his monk given name! We grew up knowing him as Billy) before 6:30pm. I would love to arrive at the Temple and grab a shower before attending a course he is teaching. For the month of February, or maybe since it was valentines day too, they are holding a four week class on Love and Attachment.

I find it really cool to be able to drop in on a class like this and gleam some wisdom from a man that devotes his life to acquiring it through meditation and study. Priceless to me.

Super friendly vibe to this coffee shop for sure. Kind of hard to leave but the road calls. Packed up and hit the road to LA for a couple of hours.

I've gotten used to seeing my cousin in maroon monk attire and it's also not a surprise to see a smile a mile wide on him upon arrival. Not that it's me. Well, we are related, but I don't think he has the duck gene. Pretty sure that came from my dads side. But just because you're related doesn't necessarily mean you'll get a "glad to see you" feeling right? I mean I think I'm a pretty nice guy but we can all be a little quacky sometimes. But his smile is more of him just being a man with a heart that embodies warmth and gives it freely...

After chatting a bit he got ready for his class and I got my shower in. Then I spent a quiet and enlightening few hours with maybe forty other people listening to some wisdom flow out of that warm heart.

More on that below : )

My bed for the night we made up on the floor of the Temple - so a peaceful night was assured with all that love in the room!

Inside

So much to chat about here leaving the beach and all but I want to share some of the insights I received while listening to Rigpa.

It was so good to see so many people show up on a Monday night to want to learn about this inside journey also. Dang everyone today is so busy right!? These folk have disciplined themselves and made it a priorty to set aside time to deepen and grow love with inside themselves. I totally honor them for that. No finer goal in life perhaps.

We had a great discussion on the differences between love and attachment.

A basic difference is attachment involves more of a wish for me to be happy while Love is a wish for you to be happy. I like that.

He began by naming three types of love:

Affectionate Love - kind of obvious!

Wishing Love - more like the wishing of happiness for the other.

Third is Cherishing Love - includes the above two and requires the sharing of time and space together, and a seasoning of the relationship as it is cultivated, renewed and celebrated daily. I would add some of the Christian definitions here especially from Corinthians - Love is patient, love is kind, it does not envy or boast and is not proud. You've probably heard that at a wedding somewhere I'm sure.

How do we discern our love from an attachment that may be hidden under our emotions?

A great first gauge is -There is no pain in love. Crazy big thought right there. If you ponder it for a moment.

True love comes from a place where there is no grasping, no needing of the other to fill the void within me. True love wants nothing but the best for the other person. Hard to imagine being of such pure love that even in a breakup you could still wish the other person extreme happiness on their journey. Geez chew on that for a second. So whether you are throwing their clothes out onto the front lawn while you kick them out. Or you are picking up your wet clothes that just got hit with the sprinkler - you are still wishing the other happiness. Wow. I might have to do a little work still : )

No grasping or pride in there if you can manage that!

Even in the passing of a loved one - to be able see that some of our pain can be because we, ourselves will miss the other. Not to belittle anyone’s pain in a loss by any means but to see that a lot of the hurt we felt is because we made it about ourselves. The hurt stems from "I" miss you. That's another crazy big thought. I think we’re all familiar with the loss of a dear one, heck even a divorce is super painful. Acknowledging and processing these hurts is ever so critical to moving forward…and perhaps when we do and with some distance from the pain we can see how this attachment may have existed in the relationship. Worth pondering anyway.

Another insight Rigpa shared was to say how beautiful it can be to turn that pain, that loss into well wishing. Like prayers for the recently passed and wishing them the highest love on their journey into heaven or the next life depending on your view. Or wishing them happiness on the way to the laundromat to dry out their clothes - That would be a step anyway right? : )

Outside

Today's journey started with a beach front wakeup, a drive along California's coast and ended in the city of LA. Three amazingly different personalities and all worthy of awe.

Upside

Feeling blessed by the morning views and then being blessed by an evening teaching.

All so good!

downside

Not getting one of the cookies I brought Rigpa : )

Every Which Way but East

This is the final stop westbound! I'll spend tomorrow's morning hours here with my cousin and then begin the long drive home!

Good morning Sunshine! Nice to wake up on the warm side of the country's bed.

Morro Rock protruding from the bay.

A look back to where the jeep and tent are... love the rolling hills too.

Shoreline paths in Cambria, California

Downtown Cambria

Great walking paths here

Wow! Just another personality of our country! Stopped a few times on the drive today just to take pics...Never been to Ireland but thinking it might look something like this.