Tuesday, November 9, 2010

on a clear day, i can see forever

Yesterday was one of those days where I was feeling RUSHED. I had too much to do and not enough time to accomplish it all. Sound familiar? It was my day off from work, but it was going to be far from a "day off". My morning started off with taking care of the cats (food, fresh water, litter box duty), doing two loads of laundry, some light housework, taking a shower and getting dressed, then out the door to the chiropractor. After that, I still needed to go to the laundromat to dry the two loads of laundry (can't use my dryer right now - long story), get my hair cut, pick up a few items at the grocery store, see if I could use my bargaining skills at Best Buy on a new laptop (that was a flop - I was basically ignored by the few salespeople in the store), return a scarf to TJ Maxx, and get some OPI nail polish at Ulta while it was still on sale (plus I had a $3.50 off coupon).

However...

It was one of those rare November days - a day of sunshine and warmth. In northern IL. Too good to be true. I am always so busy rushing around, trying to get everything done, that sometimes I lose sight of what's most important. Like taking some time for myself. Enjoying what's right in front of me. Taking advantage of the beautiful weather. Slowing down. So, on the way to all those errands, I stopped at the State Park and took a long walk. It felt so good to be moving, breathing in the fresh air, and feeling the warmth on my face.


 I stopped once in awhile to snap some photos of spots that I thought were especially beautiful...





And then I came across this poem today...so perfect. Sums it all up.

ENOUGH (Jeffrey Harrison)
 It's a gift, this cloudless November morning
warm enough for you to walk without a jacket
along your favorite path. The rhythmic shushing
of your feet through fallen leaves should be
enough to quiet the mind, so it surprises you
when you catch yourself telling off your boss
for a decade of accumulated injustices,
all the things you've never said circling inside you.

It's the rising wind that pulls you out of it,
and you look up to see a cloud of leaves
swirling in sunlight, flickering against the blue
and rising above the treetops, as if the whole day
were sighing, Let it go, let it go,
for this moment at least, let it all go.



4 comments:

  1. We had a beautiful November day, too~ one of those gifts~ much colder weather on the way...A lovely post! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog and for your nice comment!

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are a very talented photographer!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Those are my favorite kinds of days. Always remember the poem "Dust if you Must"!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Love taking these kinds of walks and it looks like your park is beautiful. What pretty photos. Hope it helped you clear the day's cobwebs.

    Hugs from Holland ~
    Heidi

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to leave a kind comment - I read and appreciate each one!