On a whim

We’re spur of the moment folks. We cross our bridges when we come to them. When life gets to be a little too overwhelming, we grab our gear and head for the hills … literally.

This morning I awoke to bright sunshine and a contemplative mood. So I did what has come naturally to the folks in my family for several generations. I packed up my kids—and my sister and her kids—and headed for greener … umm … forests.

Utopia is not far, about 2 hours and 15 minutes if you’re an over-achiever when it comes to posted speed limits. We crossed the state line and inhaled a collective sigh. Half-way there.

And then we arrived.

It was quiet. It was soulful. We were enveloped in a world of beauty and each other. No deadlines. No cell phones. No e-mails. No traffic. Just an occasional bird call, the rush of the creek, and laughter from our lips.

Basically, we shirked all responsibility for the day and set out to play as hard as we could.

We succeeded. Exceptionally.

We stood in the frigid mountain stream until our feet ached and our toes threatened to fall off.

We hiked through the forest and swatted deer flies and wondered when the mountain laurel would bloom. And then we imagined what we would all do if we crossed paths with a bear. We determined our combined ruckus would prevent any bears from daring to scare us.

We skipped stones …

… and looked for chipmunks.

We searched for crawdads …

… and succeeded!

 Then we headed home in time for supper.

Relaxed and rejuvenated.

Fresh perspective in tact.

Tonight I’ll catch up on chores. Tomorrow I’ll go to work and put forth the very best I possess. And always in the back of my mind I’ll have the memories of our off-on-a-whim day, knowing we’ll return in July with tents and sleeping bags and lots and lots of food. As a family. As our parents and grandparents did in this same beautiful place more than 50 years ago.

Is three hours of pure bliss worth a combined 4-1/2 hours of drive time with five kids in tow? Absolutely. Off on a lark is good every once in awhile. Find your place of bliss and go there whenever you can. You won’t regret it, I promise!