I haven’t left the house other than to walk to my mom’s for some sausage balls and homemade chocolate chip cookies left over from last night’s New Year’s Eve celebration. But not leaving the house on such a dreary, rainy, wonderful day doesn’t mean that I haven’t accomplished anything. I did a lot of thinking. I thought about taking my Christmas tree out today. Since it was, however, so rainy, cold and dreary outside, I decided I could handle looking at the lights for one more day. I’m going to miss that beautiful old tree when it’s gone, but nothing can go on forever and while I love the tree, I have missed the view out the window.
Besides thinking, though, I got many things in the house done. General cleaning, straightening and taking stock of my pantry. It seems that I have some baking soda, a few bottles of spices and a bag of flour. Not conducive to cooking anything of any substance. I’d like to try to get back into cooking, otherwise, I may have to break my cardinal rule and eat a hot pocket.
Besides coming to the conclusion that there is no truly edible food in my house, I’ve been getting my hiking gear oiled and cleaned, ready to get back to weekends in the mountains. I am confident that when I see the Orthopedists in a couple of weeks, he will clear me to get back to the trails and hard places that I love to go. I was complaining a few days ago about the belligerent 9-year old I had to wrestle into submission in order to obtain a flu swab, but I think he did me more good than harm. I actually believe he helped put that pesky, out-of-place bone back where it belongs. Guess I owe the brat a thank you.
I cannot even voice how much I miss nature, the mountains, the rocks and trees, the waterfalls, the arduous climbs and the smell of the earth in every season. So far, I have missed Winter completely, but lucky for me, Winter really only officially began a few days ago. I long for the bare branches of the trees as they stand sentry over a barren earth, biding their time until she blooms again, bringing forth life and a different kind of beauty. She calls to me; Mother Nature, that is. She calls to me as the light changes, shifting over the mountains, shadows forming and dissipating almost in the same moment. I long for the adventure of what I will find at the top of the next hill, around the next turn, behind the thunderous sound of water falling for hundreds of feet. I dream of standing alone with nothing but the glory of nature surrounding me and find myself nearly trembling with anticipation to get back to it.
While I have been out of commission, I have exercised at home, keeping my legs and thighs strong and ready for the hikes and climbs that I so dearly love. Yes, in a couple of weeks, I think I will be able to stop those mind-numbingly boring, in-home routines, strap on my heavy backpack without feeling like my shoulder will detach itself from my person, grab my tripod and head out with my trusty Pentax to see what I’ve missed while I’ve been gone. I wonder if my favorite places have missed me as much as I’ve missed them. I’d like to think so.
