Sunday, September 11, 2011

Burning Man - Missing it- Finding my own Home

Lately it's been ... awesome.

I missed Burning Man this year for the first time in 5 years. It affected me in a way I never thought it would. I was heartbroken for a week. I thought about it constantly. I knew it was coming- I made the decision last year at the end of Burning Man to not go this year. And I thought it would be just fine, I thought I wouldn't miss it. Well, I was wrong. Of course it was fine, obviously, but I was sad all week. Consumed with thoughts of my friends in the desert and what I was missing. I tried to console myself with friends who had also missed the burn, hot showers and real food and my own bed, but none of it helped all that much.

Luckily for me, I have amazing friends. On Saturday night, which would have been the night of the man burning, I went to a girls night with my friends. We got SLOSHED drunk and sat around a bonfire and hugged and kissed and loved each other. It was just what I needed that exact moment in time and I realized that the spirit of Burning Man is what I missed the most... The feeling of community, of loving, of freedom. Yes I missed the art, and my friends there, but I did NOT miss the hot, or the dust, or the dust storms.

I'm thankful for my friends. They have helped me in so many ways they don't even know I'm sure. Lately I've been making NEW friends and I like that too. I love adding good people to my friend circle.

So I lived through a week without Burning Man- the first week in 5 consecutive years. I did it, and it was OK. Instead, I found a semblance of home here where I live in reality. In Washington, not in Oregon, not in the Nevada desert. I look back and can't believe it has been almost two whole years since I've been with my boyfriend, two whole years since I've lived here. Two amazing happy years is nothing, I'm hoping for at least 100 more.

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