My pilgrimage continues into a sixth decade of living. Thanks to the extravagant love of The Amazing Susan (TAS) and the usual cast of characters (friends, family, neighbors, etc.), I felt well and duly celebrated. I was especially grateful for the absence of black balloons, Depends, and Geritol jokes. For this landmark birthday, it was a week-long celebration.

Dudes

The day before my birthday I had coffee with a church music friend, Chris. He’s a great dude who plays electric guitar in three different bands AND in our church’s worship ministry. We shared life and stories and enjoyed the promise of a growing friendship. Friendship is such a great gift.

Donuts

On my actual birthday, I shared local donut masterpieces with dear grandchild #1 (she’s 10 years old). My go-to fried dough is a superlative old-fashioned cake donut. No fuss, frills, frosting, or frou-frou  — just straight up donut-y goodness. The grandgirl prefers her donuts pink and frosted. We both ate happy.

Dinner Out

Later in the day, TAS and I took in a tapas dinner downtown where I also enjoyed my first Manhattan cocktail. Afterward, we had great seats for the musical “Waitress.” The song “She Used to Be Mine” by Sara Bareilles always wrecks me — it features as the highlight ballad of the show.

Discovery

During my birthday week I also discovered a new-to-me musical artist, Wild Rivers, an indie band from Canada. They are musically camped out in the beautiful place where folk, rock, and old school vibe R&B meet in a sweet embrace. I’ve been listening to them all week and celebrating the gift of finding new and unexpected music that grips and gets me. Give Wild Rivers a listen!

Discovering Doug

The day after my birthday I worked my new volunteer gig at HOPE Cafe. I opened the cafe on Friday with another volunteer, Doug Dunnevant. I learned that he is an experienced writer (five novels, one of which is published) with a solid history in blogging. Check him out at his web page and his blog, “The Tempest.” I was greatly inspired by his story and stories. One ginormous revelation that the Camino provided was how happy and in-tune the act of writing makes me. More to come…

Death Sauce Chicken

What I really wanted to do on my birthday was to cook for my family. So we had a big cookout. I enjoyed seeing my kids and their “plus ones” and grandchildren. Good times.

I served one of my special dishes – “Death Sauce Chicken.” I named it this as a cheeky way to notify eaters that this is not tame food. It has all the flavors. Especially spicy!

The consensus view is that it’s toothsome and yummy. Here’s my recipe if you feel brave and adventurous enough to give it a whirl.

Marinade eight boneless skinless chicken thighs overnight. Grill over open fire as kebabs or whole pieces.

For the marinade, combine:

• 4 tablespoons regular soy sauce (normal soy sauce, not reduced salt, light soy, or tamari)
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons ginger paste
• 1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
• 4 tablespoons sambal oelek (an Asian chili paste; do not substitute another ingredient here – this is the very soul of death sauce)

The Decade of Reckoning Considered

I was blessed to have happy birthdays thrown my way by many folks — I genuinely enjoy friendly texts and social media “likes,” and especially cherish phone calls, written messages, and birthday cards.

My dear sister sent me a happy birthday e-mail. She has such an elegant and artful command of the written word. In fact, she’s made a career out of writing film trailers and ad copy and has recently completed a novel. Her art truly inspires me.

Her e-mail said, in part, “Welcome to the reckoning decade!” I’ve been considering that little nugget, trying to understand the gold veins of truth it contains.

Suffice it to say that she is a little further along on the road of life in this sixth decade of living. I reckon she has seen further ahead, to the bumps, potholes, and scary turns that often mark this chronological stretch of life’s path, such as:

• “Who am I,” and “Where am I going” questions.
• Securing meaningful experiences, as the path gets steeper and the sunset gets closer.
• Feeling the limitations of long and hard miles on a tired body.
• Relating to those who share the path.

All this calls to mind the lessons and learnings of my recent walking Camino.

I’ve learned by sweat, miles, and pain that you can’t know and don’t see all that lies ahead, but you can embrace it with the spirit of faith and adventure. We can choose to look for roadside flowers instead of fixing our gaze at the jagged rocks on the path.

We can acknowledge physical weaknesses AND choose to be present and engaged.

We can find the fun and gifts of others who are close.

Mostly, I know that I went 15 rounds with the Pyrenees, walked 460 miles across Spain, and came out smiling.

Decade of Reckoning? 60 years old? Bring it on.

I’m marching forward and upward.