Escapes

Two of my favorite escapes--the mountains (this one in Rocky Mountain National Park near the Black Lake Trail and the trail to Shelf and Solitude Lakes) and the skies--right out my writing room window.

The number of days the skies are blue in Colorado is one reason to live here. They are often available, and I don't have to get in my car to visit them. Fluffy white clouds were my transportation mode when as a child, I imagined jumping aboard them and riding from our Ozarks farm to NYC, Arizona, China, Argentina, and to the castles of the Arabian Nights.

Now I enjoy the contrasts of blue and white, and the easy way the clouds roam the skies, doing no harm. When they travel rapidly across the sky, 6-year-old Sam and I run in and out of their shadows.

The mountain picture is that of our lunch break's vista during last Friday's hike. To sit in such glorious space and enjoy a sandwich with a dear friend is such a luxury. Even when the steps up a path are steep, when my legs tire and my breath is short, I am happy on those paths. There is nothing like a rocky trail to make one be present to the moment, watching each footstep. Being present to a waterfall or tiny flowers takes me away from my daily life. I am reminded of nature's marvels, and realize that in this part of the country, fall will come too soon.

PS: Maybe some day I will get the photos placed exactly the way I want them!