PANIC IN PARADISE

Busted
Down on Bourbon Street
Set up
Like a bowling pin
Knocked down
Gets to wearin’ thin
They just won’t let you be.
~Hunter/Garcia, Weir


“God, I hope I can…”

“You can,” she interrupted as I trailed off.

We both laughed and hugged and held on tight as we laughed harder. One of those laughs that goes deep - all the way to the heart of the matter. It was leaden with the weight of what had to be done.

Desperation in Paradise. It’s a heavy, sad, consuming feeling. It could take you down. The sheer enormity of it all.

Images of Willow Creek Springs filled my mind’s eye with shimmering greenery the moment I woke up this morning. A canopy of delicate branches and flowers. Meandering paths to seating areas surrounded by herbs and flowers with hand made signs. Lavender. Calendula. Sage. Comfrey, Aloe, Rosemary…. On and on as far as you could see. Sculptures. Hummingbirds. Children laughing and running about.

A pair of classical guitars playing live over hidden loudspeakers. A stream running through it all. And a great fire pit with people talking and laughing on a brisk March day in Southern California.

Then the panic. It came back in a flash. This could all be lost. All this loving hard work.

She was fighting back tears. Lawyers. Court costs. Loans. "How are we going to pay all this money back?" Not to mention the mere upkeep of an ambitious, labor-intensive business enterprise. The Craft Fair was a bust, as pleasant a day as it had been. They’d all been depending on making some money today, but in the end, vendors wound up trading their wares with each other. The crowd never showed. The weather – cloudy, damp, cold – didn’t help. Then there’s the stupid economy. And dumb luck. Whatever the reason, the Willow Creek Springs Craft Fair wasn’t the solution everybody hoped it would be.

At least, not in dollars and cents. Fortunately, there are other solutions. People connecting around the campfire and the music and the arts and crafts. Word is going out. Maybe it will finally - miraculously - reach the right ears. Maybe help is on the way.

You have to hope. You have to stay positive. Which is what Joe and Liz Grumbine are all about. He's the first to tell you he's the most positive guy you could meet. "Because that's what I choose to be."

As I write this, Liz's beautiful Willow Creek Springs Healing Salve is working on a scar and stitches on my leg from yesterday's minor surgery to remove a skin cancer. Made of a luscious blend of Olive oil, Aloe, Calendula, Comfrey Leaf & Root, Rosemary, Beeswax, Tea Tree and Lavender oil, I fully expect it to enhance the healing. Time will tell. I took a picture of it but I think I"ll spare you that image.

Meanwhile, it's almost 2 am, and technically no longer Sunday, so I'm going to hit send and call it a day. But this story is by no means over. It's more than a story. It's a cause.