I painted a pink sunset at Tanah Lot temple. People swarmed the beach with cameras and I remembered my days as a wedding photographer. The mission is to capture the beautiful subject from an angle that makes the swarming crowds non-existent in the memory. You must walk to the spot where no one else goes. You must get low to the ground. You must be willing to get your feet wet and your ass dirty. It’s crawling with tourists and I felt a part of me grieve, wishing she could walk here in solitude and feel the magnificent temple silent, prayers floating off above the crashing waves.
It’s easy to complain about crowds. It’s more fun to hunt for beauty. I also delight in the challenge to one up everyone else, to take a picture that’s just a little bit more unique and interesting than the standard view. Again, I learned this from my years as a wedding photographer. Hundreds of cameras are shooting, make your picture the most interesting. Think beyond the expected and surprise everyone with a shot they’d never considered.
As the last light of day hovered behind the temple, I climbed onto a wet black rock and painted a watercolor landscape of this temple my father urged me to visit. I wonder how many people were here when he saw it years before I was born. I walked back in darkness, through puddles to my patiently waiting scooter driver. He drove me through the rural rice paddy roads at rush hour to get me to the temple just in time for sunset.
I left the Temple in darkness and my driver took me to The Avocado Factory in Canggu. I ate the most beautifully prepared avocado toast and drank pineapple basil mint kombucha. I made eyes at a man who sat across from me and painted another watercolor of the temple. Multiple people walking through the restaurant stopped to compliment my painting. That was a lovely ego boost. I had been enjoying the creative process but slightly judging my work as “not that good”. I ought to change my tune though, especially after that Australian woman insisted how gorgeous it was and how “absolutely talented and clever” I am (her words not mine) lol. She gave me a little shot of confidence in my work that made me smile and feel excited to keep painting.
There’s a dog in this restaurant, just chillin. I love how casual this island is. Dogs ever here, no helmets or shoes required, smiles appear easily on every face if I smile first and the air is smooth. My whole body is totally comfortable here. I feel I can have anything I want. Peace in my villa, thrill on the back of the scooters, a pretty meal, a taste of anything local and exotic or familiar from home. I like talking to my scooter drivers. None of them have ever left Bali and they’ve never heard of Seattle. This is their whole world. When I say I’m from America they say, “oh long way!” and although it’s a true statement it certainly doesn’t seem far away to me. When I was in Seattle, Bali seemed like a long way away and I longed to be there. I longed to be faraway. Now I am faraway and quite content to stay right here. I don’t feel far away. I feel very much in my comfort zone, at home, right in the spot I’d been longing to be.
Love & Rainbows, Cha Wilde
