More Love

David and Cari

2007-07-30T19:28:00.001-07:00

They got married on the beach in the middle of crazy storm and torrential downpour. It was perfect. they read this poem:

We Two, How Long We Were Fool'd
by Walt Whitman
(1819-1892)

We two, how long we were fool'd,
Now transmuted, we swiftly escape as Nature escapes,
We are Nature, long have we been absent, but now we return,
We become plants, trunks, foliage, roots, bark,
We are bedded in the ground, we are rocks,
We are oaks, we grow in the openings side by side,
We browse, we are two among the wild herds spontaneous as any,
We are two fishes swimming in the sea together,
We are what locust blossoms are, we drop scent around lanes mornings
and evenings,
We are also the coarse smut of beasts, vegetables, minerals,
We are two predatory hawks, we soar above and look down,
We are two resplendent suns, we it is who balance ourselves orbic
and stellar, we are as two comets,
We prowl fang'd and four-footed in the woods, we spring on prey,
We are two clouds forenoons and afternoons driving overhead,
We are seas mingling, we are two of those cheerful waves rolling
over each other and interwetting each other,
We are what the atmosphere is, transparent, receptive, pervious, impervious,
We are snow, rain, cold, darkness, we are each product and influence
of the globe,
We have circled and circled till we have arrived home again, we two,
We have voided all but freedom and all but our own joy.

Wedding serenade

2006-06-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

What could be better than having a a fiddler sing you a haunting melody to usher you off to your conjugal bed.

Thoughts on breakfast and the Big Sky

2006-04-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

Written for our wedding website, which will expire soon.

In the fall of 1999 I loaded all my worldly possessions into the back of my red Mazda pickup, loaded my dog Luna into the front seat, and said goodbye to South Carolina. I headed west, away from the kudzu covered porches, afternoons lolling in the river, lightning bugs, friends with slow accents, and river I had grown to know intimately. Friends told me that I would be dumbstruck when I saw the mountains of Montana, that I might wander around for a while unable to utter more than “It’s so beautiful.” This was true, those giant valleys floored me. I couldn’t get over the way the clouds outlined themselves against the sky, and the way the peaks loomed everpresent in the distance. But, it felt impersonal- an admiration one might feel for a grand author or musician- beautiful, but out of reach. For me, it was a love affair slow to ignite, but once it caught fire, it was sizable and long-lasting.

Montana has undeniable romance embedded in the landscape. Who wouldn’t fall in love with the sweeping views, the drama of the mountains, the leather of a cowboy's hands tying supplies on a pack horse. I loved how easy it was to find solitude. I also couldn’t get enough of the folks I met, and Cameron was one of them. It was the strongest community I have ever been a part of, and although it dissipated rather quickly, the folks I met during that time are still some of my closest friends. Everything there was always in a state of flux for me . Against the old time ranchers scrabbling out an existence in the face of second homes and buyers from California, I was as ephemeral as the green grass that covered the hillsides briefly between the snow and the scorching dry summers. In the two years I made Bozeman my home, I lived in five different houses and worked eight different jobs.

My longest job was with the Montana Conservation Corps. I worked multiple day hitches in the backcountry, and on my days off, I liked to saunter from my trailer park over to the little café by the cow yards. I would park myself on a stool, eat breakfast, drink coffee, and gossip with my friend Angie until I could float away without touching the ground from caffeination. There were always good eggs and potatoes and a good vibe to match. Ang and the cook usually had some sultry country music playing, and the coziness offered warm respite from the chilly weather. One day Ang was listening to a tape I had made for her, and after the Cowboy Junkies lifted out of some lost in despair bass line to return to a heartrending vocal melody, the cook paused mid egg flip. “You made this tape?” he asked. In fact I had. “Oh,” he said. “I like this music, too.” There was an awkward pause, in which I was supposed to do or say something profound, but all that came out was “Yah,” an admittedly inadequate response to the hope in his voice. He went back to his egg flipping, and I went back to my coffee. Before that moment, Cameron and I had played pool, he had been in the background cooking my breakfast, and we had shared a quiet chairlift ride at the ski hill-kindling. That morning, however, I noticed him.

When I once again packed the truck to drive west, my earthly possessions no longer fit in the back. The overflow (including my one-speed blue bikey that later got nabbed off the streets of Santa Cruz) nestled in a U-haul trailer alongside the belongings of Cameron, who drove two days behind me. Luna rode with honor in his passenger seat. On my drive, I pulled over in Idaho, next to the place where the Lochsa and Selway Rivers converge to bawl my eyes out. I was once again leaving my home, but this time, part of it came with me.

Five years later, Cameron and I have made it through a move to California, two break ups, innumerable pet mishaps, my graduate degree, and many other harrows and triumphs of daily living and growing. We’ve shared countless magnificent breakfasts in the company of a myriad of beautiful friends. We have witnessed some spectacular sunsets. We have, at times, missed eachother painfully. That fire I found in Montana is still burning bright, keeping me warm with its glow, even when it coughs and sputters. I look forward to making it through whateverelse there is to come- a lifetime of it. And there will always be a seat at our table and plenty of coffee for everyone.

north of taos

2005-12-14T12:03:00.000-08:00

north of taos 2
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

I hope i never forget the feeling of first being married.

Hacienda Cusin

2005-09-14T15:31:00.000-07:00

DSCN1824
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Spooky. Romantic. Big Fireplaces. Flowers. $10 litres of vino tinto. extra nice staff. very funny people. long naps. Andrea´s wedding dress. large exit bill. comfy bed. very good friends. so absoultely beautiful. somewhat magic.

Engaged in a discussion

2005-09-14T15:24:00.000-07:00

DSCN1901
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

So, these folks, in my opinion, are pretty damn engaged, but according to Wendy, they are only engaged in a discussion about marriage, but they sure are cute.

A Quaker wedding in Ecuador

2005-09-13T15:23:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

John and Andrea had a Quaker wedding in which they married themselves, no officiant. Much of the ceremony was silent, but people spoke when moved. The whole thing was quite emotional, and I was a basket case by the end. People said such beautiful things, and there was time to really revel in their commitment, this rite of passage, the way we are growing older. I felt so much joy in watching my old friend make such a profound public commitment.

Walking on Rose Petals

2005-09-13T15:21:00.000-07:00

DSCN1772
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Finger Puppet Party Favors

2005-09-13T15:19:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Unfortunately they sort of disappeared as the night wore on, but Sarah had this idea that we should do a dance where each person strides down the center in a dramatic interpretation of their particular puppet.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Wedding Camp

2005-09-13T15:15:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

By the end of our time at Hacienda Cusin for John and Andrea´s wedding in Ecuador, we had been blessed with a scrumptious share of late nights talking, evenings dancing, delicious meals, and many stories with some of their all too terrific friends.

Amanda and Andy Bramble

2005-09-09T14:34:00.000-07:00

DSCN1683
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

A-manda-la

2005-09-04T13:22:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Megan and I spent the week before Amanda and Andy´s wedding working a mandala for the ceremony. It was a circle created from rocks with a path going through the center, however as the week evolved and people brough or sent items to be placed in the mandala, it grew to be a beautiful work of art. Duriong this week i camped in the desert and was able to develop my own relationship with the landscape, as well as the friends and family of the couple who filtered in as the week progressed.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

The ceremony began with the sisters of the bride and groom circling the entire space with sage, holding a red cloth.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

This was followed by the bride and groom having their hands washed before walking through the mandala to their marriage spot. The ceremony also included calling the four directions, a meditaion, the song tis a gift to be simple. Amanda and Andy splashed all the guests with water as a thank-you for our part in their life. The ceremony ended with Josh and Megan wrapping the two up in a red cloth coccoon, then unraveling them as they spun and leading them away into their married life. It was beautiful.

Cameron's vows

2005-08-30T18:20:00.000-07:00

I promise to listen and understand the story of your feelings.

I promise to affirm your friendships because they make our relationship stronger.

I promise to love and nourish your spirit.

I promise to be adaptive as we change through the years.

I promise to love you, even if you start drinking weak coffee and white wine.

Katie's vows

2005-08-30T18:14:00.000-07:00

Katie:
Cameron, I promise in this marriage to care for myself so that I may also, unconditionally, care for you.

I promise to accept you for who you are, striving to love your weaknesses while supporting you in actualizing your dreams.

I promise to openly communiate with you and to constantly expand my capacity to listen, understand, and empathize.

I promise to be careful not to scratch your records and , to the best of my ability, put them away by genre.

More than anything, I promise to remain a good friend who allows you to grow and change and remians curious about who you are.

The Brambles

2005-08-30T18:11:00.000-07:00

Amanda and Andy created a new last name for themselves and bestowed eachother with the name as they exchanged shots of their favorite liquor: repectively tequila and scotch. After giving eachother the surname and drinking to its behalf, they tossed their glasses into the desert and waited to be pronounced husband, and with Amanda's concession, wife.

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

This was taken a few days before the wedding on a walk into the town of Madrid.

cameron's 30th

2005-08-04T15:47:00.000-07:00

cameron's 030
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

I made Cameron a little nature card for his b-day. Lost Creek Wilderness, CO.

Honey moon backpack

2005-08-04T15:45:00.000-07:00

cameron's 054
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

So, it seems that the official part of the honeymoon is now over, as we arrive back (sans home) in the bay area, but in some ways it goes on. In Colorado we spent four days in the lost creek wilderness- what a stroke of genius to encounter that place. It was beautiful- the spring rains had turned the valleys surreal deep green with ephemeral ponds peeping through. Wildflowers were everywhere. The best part was this crazy knobby granite sticking up everywhere making us think we were in sandstoney Utah instead of the Rocky Mountains. We also didn't see anyone for four days.

Wendy's thoughts

2005-07-30T13:29:00.000-07:00

Check out Wendy's post wedding blog entry

July 13th, "It Runs", Lab_of_Lux by Wendy C. Ortiz

The More Love Quartet

2005-07-30T13:00:00.000-07:00

IMG_1700
Originally uploaded by bargie.

thank you to the beatiful voices and music makers in this picture!!!!

How was it? (an e-mail to Kristy Kroeker)

2005-07-28T17:19:00.000-07:00

Hello Kristy. I don’t know where to begin with the whole wedding experience. It was powerful, fun magical- Jan describes it as a love fest. I don’t know what happened to make it what it was, but everyone just opened and spilled- there was time for the ladies to giggle and tell secrets, some racous dancing, a lot of great music, intergenerational singing, crazy outfits….It seemed we let of of our colors fly and the older generation opened their arms wide- even my republican ex-cop dad (who cried many times during the process). For me, I felt like I exposed myself to my family in a way I never have, and they loved me more for it. It was some deep acceptance and affirmation. I also at times was grumpy and weepy and wished I had endless energy and not such a key role in the event so I could soak up every second, but that was such a minor subplot. Overall, by the time I was walking down the aisle, I felt so loved and supported (and adorned and pampered- I was glad I really went for it) that I felt kind of like I was floating. It was overall, truly the most important and special experience of my life so far. For that, I feel eternally grateful- so thank-you for asking and being there in spirit. With lots of love, Katie

katie's honeymoon for one

2005-07-27T16:51:00.000-07:00

katie's honeymoon for one
Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

Nobody ever talks about this part- that at the end of it all, after the requisite (and delicious) mooning in eachother's eyes, you might need a little alone time. Mine came in the form of high altitude porch in CO with a tremendous view. There was naked yoga, grilled salmon, and lovely wine brought back from Italy by Ang and Joe.

Montana Girls

2005-07-27T16:47:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by bargie.

How do I love these three? Let me count the ways.

Bex and Barger

2005-07-25T00:18:00.000-07:00

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Originally uploaded by Cameron/Duff.

On Wed. night we were attempting a bachelorette party (there was some incredible cheerleading and line dancing- I was duly impressed), but we were winding down quickly, barely hanging on talking around a table in the rec room when we heard a car. We immediately burst into motion with boas and hats and a general flurry of excitement. We swooned out the door running in mass to welcome Becca. As Angie broke away from her ecstatic screaming and jumping hug with Becca to look at her, she started crying some real tears. Jen noticed as well, and said "You know they haven't seen eachother in two years...."

Lunar

2005-07-25T00:10:00.000-07:00

Dog and Wife
Originally uploaded by Whitney Cohen.

I think the part of the Cameron's slide show that got me the most was when He had all that video of luna with "Long May You Run" playing. I am glad she was there to witness another big change in my life...

pretty cute

2005-07-15T11:54:00.000-07:00

100_1226
Originally uploaded by billba1leveque.

thanks for the photo Bill!

Stars

2005-07-15T11:37:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the glorious wedding present of a Thai massage at 10,000 waves, the therapist commented, "So you got married in Pecos. Aren't there a lot of stars there?" I was immediately transported to laying on the ground outside of the Tea House with Candace admiring Scorpio, waiting to see another shooter. We lay there and talked about our relationship with the great out of doors, our teachers in that arena, and acceptance of changing relationships until the chill seeped through our clothes and we had to wander off to bed. "Doesn't Val Kilmer live up there?" the masseuse asked.

Favorite Quotes from the week

2005-07-15T11:32:00.000-07:00

From Dad: "They talk about giving away the bride, but I can't give away Katie. Nobody owns Katie."

Kathy: "I just got introduced as Jan's wife. I'm nobody's wife. Partner maybe, but not wife."

Candace: "Ah, Rose."

Many (including myself): "This has been the best week of my life!"

Sarah: "My mom and I agreed, Katie sure talks a lot."

Billie: "I'm from Corpus Cristi and I knew most of these ding-dongs when they were in diapers."

Steve: "I think I got to know Katie better this week than I have in her whole life."

at the Friday BBQ

2005-07-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

bride and groom
Originally uploaded by jbracken.

thanks for the picture John

Hand in Hand

2005-07-12T13:07:00.000-07:00

Ilana and Josh wrote this song as a wedding gift and played it before over 100 peopel at the pre-wedding barbeque- brave souls. Thw words were inspired by Sarah Kellems mother before her wedding, "There are three phases to love: Falling in love, being in love, Staying in love." Sarah told this to me, I told it to Ilana, Ilana to josh, and now this song. Cameron and I are learning it on the guitar now. I have yet to make it through the last verse without crying.

Butterflies here they come again
Oh how the wind calls her name
Birds sing and the sun is always shining
Ever since she came

In her eyes the brand new day
Dawning after heavy rain
Blue sky chase the clouds away
The feeling I can’t explain

For falling in love is like the springtime
Wildflowers bloom across the land
Falling in love is running
Side by side arm and arm hand in hand

Twilight and the shadows fall
One by one the stars fill the sky
Evening and the stillness calls
Here we are just you and I

Summer wind won’t let it blow
Let the moonlight shine
For my heart it overflows
knowing that you are mine

For being in love is like the nighttime
Silence we both understand
Being in love is dancing
Side by side arm and arm hand in hand

Hard times are at the door
Oh how the seasons change
But the sun still shines like before
Ever since she came

For staying in love is like a lifetime
Learning to help each other stand
Staying in love is walking
Side by side arm and arm hand in hand

Chords:
Verse:
G G Am Am
C C G G
G G Am Am
C D G G
Chorus:
G G Am Am
G F/C G G
G G Am Am
G C D G