Embracing the Fog – embracing the mystery

Oh how thrilling to watch the thick fog roll in to the St. John’s harbour during a 3-hour spontaneous solo photo-hike up Signal Hill the day after Summer Solstice.

As I explored the ever-changing landscape, I was reminded of some important aspects of intuitive living.

I love to think of my Higher Self & Team of Divine Helpers as up above the planet able to see our big picture while we’re down here often oblivious to what’s around the corner.

We may not see our destination or much of the route there, but we don’t need to. All we need to see is the stretch right in front of us as we head in the right direction.

I had no intention of heading out that morning. It was bright and sunny, but my task list was at the forefront of my mind.

When I got the inner call to head to Signal Hill, little did I know I would get to witness the dramatic rolling in of a thick fog that would soon blanket downtown.

I may not ever find out the extent of the reason I was guided to go out that day, but my joy was good reason enough.

I was happy to embrace the mystery of why I was guided to walk into the fog.

Instead of sticking to the popular routes, I felt moved to start off on the backside of the mountain along some tiny trails I’d never been on before.

At one point, I got a bit scared that the path alongside the edge of the cliffs may become dangerous. After all, no one else was around to see / hear me if I fell.

Fear started to take a hold of me, but I was able to discern that it wasn’t an intuitive warning. It was just my inner chicken.

So I comforted her by saying -“Let’s go see where it leads. If it gets too difficult, you can always turn back. OK? Deal!”

I kept going and eventually, I just stopped and got a clear “no further!”. So I turned around thinking I’d have to retrace my steps.  But just behind me going uphill was a steep but manageable trail I hadn’t seen seconds before. 

With my walking stick, it was no problem.

Halfway up, I turned around to a spectacular view of the fog sweeping the Narrows beneath me. And soon after that, I joined up to the trail I was more familiar with, exclaiming a big “I did it! Yay!!!”

The trail wasn’t totally deserted, but the man standing on the boulder above made no sign of having heard me. lol

Having reached a beautiful vista from above the fog, I watched as two women were walking in my direction. One was a redhead with long curls.

“Oh how she would look great in my video looking out at the invisible ocean”. Newfoundland is very Irish and so redheads are quite common, especially in tourism videos.

I can be quite shy. But I remembered how happy I was that I’d finally found the guts to ask a woman in Dublin if I could photograph her plaid boots & red suitcase – one of my favourite photos from the trip. So once again, I found the courage to ask if she’d model for me. 

It turns out she wasn’t from here but a visitor from Ontario. She was delighted by the ask and as you’ll see, did a fabulous job of slowly turning to the left looking at the fog. Yay!

Guidance is useless if you don’t act on it. I felt the urge to ask and I’m so glad I did.

I had some lovely connections during my hike. For a while I walked alongside an Australian living in Toronto. Later, I chatted with a couple from Quebec, sharing tourist tips.

Who knows if something I said had a positive impact on the rest of their time here.

We don’t always have to know.

Sometimes we’re asked to be a messenger. Sometimes, we’re asked to open to receive messages. 

I enjoyed approaching these encounters with curiosity and my usual enthusiasm about the beauty of this place.

If I can be a blessing in someone’s day, wonderful! I’ll always be grateful for the blessing that redhead was when she said “yes!”.

Some people had climbed or driven up Signal Hill hoping to get its famous view of the ocean.

It may have been sunny when they left downtown, but there was no water to be seen by the time I reached the top.

I found the fog absolutely stunning. And so did many others.

But I’m sure some were disappointed. 

We always have a choice about how we react to circumstances.

Part of intuitive living is trusting that there’s a reason for everything. It’s a lot easier than believing everything is working against you.

I’d woken up that morning with the intention to catch up on my blog. I had the topic but not the usual spark to share. I knew that wasn’t serving you or me.

That’s when I felt myself called to Signal Hill.

And oh what bliss! From beginning to end (including my Ethiopian lunch), I was bursting with joy – even or especially when I felt the fear and did it anyway!

That joy is a sure sign that I was on track, even if my day wasn’t going according to plan.

A few more hours of video editing later, I had this beauty & blog to share with you.

Hope you enjoyed them both.