It can be better to receive

i woke up and looked out the window and saw someone i did not know, but i could guess who they were.  i threw on my clothes, bopped out the door and said

“You must be Dragon, i am Pax”

to which he replied “i know i read your blog most mornings”

and of course this peaked my curiosity (and tickled my immodesty).  We talked for a bit, of his mixed ethnic origins (Mayan, Swedish and Mexican), his early life fishing for food with him mom as a child.  The same mom who bought a school bus which she named Lucy and painted it before taking Dragon and his sister across the country, turning their poverty into an adventure.  Dragon told me that he was engaged, which is a state he hoped to maintain indefinitely, not really believing in marriage, but embracing commitment.

i may never know Dragon’s given name.  Wild Horse named him shortly after he arrived and Dragon embraced this with the willing acceptance and daring which seems his style.  And i dont need to know his given name, because for me his taken one is better in every way.

But what won my heart was when Dragon offered to cook at Twin Oaks on short notice.  i had invited a couple of enthusiastic Land Day guests to stay at Twin Oaks and see if it might work for their family.  I got them assigned a week of work each and then they vanished without a word.  And thus their unfilled labor assignments become my headache as their host.  Today i needed a prep cook and Dragon stepped up cheerfully and the crew back at Twin Oaks was impressed with his speed and pleasant manner.

Dragon helping with dishes at Twin Oaks