“Thunderstorm” courtesy of worradmu / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
It’s the beginning of goodbye.
And I’m a little lost now.
I reach out to fill the void. Alone.
The rain falls.
The thunder both frightens
and lulls.
I hear the rain outside,
collecting near the basement window.
I hope for comfort from the rain.
I wait.
Silence. Darkness.
Space between the thunder.
A little less goodbye.
A little less
Goodbye.
Rumble.
Goodbye.
Rumble.
Bye.
“Deer From Forest” courtesy of anankkml / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Today’s Mistake: Going on Facebook
I told myself I wasn’t going on Facebook today. And then sometime later I sat down on my couch, laptop in my lap, and I said “Just 5 minutes.” Then, “Just til 2:30,” and then 40 minutes later I finally got off.
And it brought me down.
Conspiracies surrounding the events of the Boston Marathon, criticism of Fox News network and some of their newscasters’ wishy-washyness on the Bill of Rights, and negative comments on one of my posts. Plus, I felt the guilt and disappointment of my broken commitment not to go on today. The frustration, the anger, the overall negativity. . .I became upset and depressed..
And then came —
Today’s Good Choice: Going Outside
First I went for one of my backwards walks with Bowser (to build up my hamstrings). It was gorgeous outside, and I took in the view, hugged my favorite tree, and saw an egret!
Then Brian got home and we went for a bike ride. We’ve saved some time by starting out from the house and making our way to any paths along the way. The wind was tough, but we had a beautiful ride (6 deer near the path!) and made good time. We got home at 18 miles, and then Brian had us bike our nearby walk path and a couple times around our court so that I got my full 20 miles. in 🙂
So, I got back on track with exercise since the flooding. and the endorphins restored my emotional balance. There were a few moments today — right after yoga and at times when I was outside — when I realized — “Wow! I’m truly happy.” And: “No matter what happens in the future, I am happy right here, right now.”
“I place fewer and fewer demands upon others, and especially myself. I am free to commune with nature, work, play, read, or just do nothing.” – from Dr. Wayne W. Dyer’s Living the Wisdom of the Tao (75th verse)
I badly need this today!
“Arms Raised Man Watching Sunset” by Chaiwat / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Today was heaven. I still worked a lot today, but I got a few great hours in the outdoors.
It began with an invigorating 12.5 mile ride around our neighborhood. Instead of our regular route, Brian took us on a detour into a previously unexplored forest preserve. It was a lovely, rambling route that took us past quite a few leisurely walkers and nearly returned us to the beginning of our route.
I didn’t want to go back inside. So, we continued with a short stroll with Bowser and along the walkway near the house.
I’m guessing this unexpected spring December has something to do with global warming. Is it wrong that I appreciated it so much? I keep thinking about moving to California, where the weather is pleasant year round. Today I thought Chicago might be bearable if we could continue having weather like this!
This post is an excuse to post some pictures. 🙂 I had a lovely time with two awesome teacher pals at Starved Rock National Park this week. We’ll begin with one of my favorite parts of nature — water (and well-placed trees).
And another of my favorite parts of nature. . . rock. Starved Rock is full of beautiful canyons. (And, of course, there’s another great tree!)
A gorgeous natural high rise that we discovered by accident. (Some of the trails are a little confusing.) Look for the blue jacket. . .
These wildflowers followed us throughout our long 7.5 mile hike. This was the farthest we’d ever hiked. I’m looking forward to our next visit!
