Merriment and awe

Hiking trail marker.  2013 senk

Pyramidally-shaped spruce trees stand in their verdant regalia along a hiking trail that meanders near a campground of Shenandoah National Park. Nearby deer rest or graze while flicking their tails as blithely as country drivers do their waving hands. While I savor the texture of bark upon tree varieties, the warm compression of sun on my face mingled with cool brushes from mountain breezes, and the melody of nature's unsupervised symphony, Joey rollicks.

"Ah! There's another one!" says he, spying a slash of powder-blue paint upon a silvery trunk. This manmade stand-out reminds me that we are, indeed, on the right track - even if my mind has wandered.

Friend, do you find moments when something in your purview (whether a person or an event or a symbol) draws your attention back to your purpose?  Perhaps they're those eureka moments when you, too, think Aha! Or, instead, maybe they're more panicky realizations that your hydra-esque schedule needs pruning. Regardless, may your day bring opportunity to focus on that which seeps inspired meaning to your life. May you turn from task to task with merriment and awe.