Vacation

Having just returned from a beautiful stay in the Catskill Mountains, I only wish I could have left my cares there. Returning from such a bucolic place to urban Jersey City is somewhat crashing, and yet comforting. In the mountains there is fresh air, beautiful trees, swallows swooping about over a great pond or river, quiet...the transition back brings back financial stresses, insecurities about the future, a rash that seemed to dissolve along with the stress. But this is home. Where else can I be and do the things that make me who I am? But also, who am I kidding!? I'd give my left nipple to be back in those mountains every day, with no money, and not a care in the world. Is all of this stress really worth anything? Worth your life, your sanity? I think that what we should value in this life is the quiet, the solitude, the peace that comes from just being. I woke up in a fit one evening on our vacation and couldn't get back to sleep. I made some tea, took something to try and calm me down, and went for a walk in the early morning darkness. It was around 4:30 am. The frogs were still chirping, but the birds began to awaken. In the silver light of the half moon, the sun's rays began to filter through the mountains. With the smallest glimmer of light another bird would begin to stir, then another would sing quietly, then another...it was one of the most beautiful moments of the trip. To see the world around me wake up to the sun's light. Not traffic or people walking to bus stops, but nature blossoming to greet the world. My connection to the natural world grows deeper every time I go on these trips. I do my best to ground myself, to see the beauty in the light and darkness, to notice the simple, quieting movement of the water, watch the flora and fauna thrive, and try to return and become a part of it. So much of our modern lives separates us from the Earth. It's time to reconnect and realize that the natural world is ours to be cherished and to nurture. Without it we are nothing, there is no rejuvenation, no solace, no connection of the spirit with the dirt, the sky, the stars, and the universe from which we came. That spiritual connection is so important and should never be lost no matter where life takes us. When we lose our spirit, we lose ourselves. When we lose ourselves, I believe we lose love. Everything has a spirit; every bird, animal, plant, speck of dirt, rock, building...it all has a spirit. Being lost in nature reminds me of this connection of spirit between everything that radiates from one side of the planet to the other, and we vibrate into One.