A Child of Nature

Remember how Phil Collins could feel it comin’ in the air tonight? Well, I definitely feel it comin’ in the air in the morning. When I hit the trail early in the morning lately, it’s a little cooler ~ which is a tremendous relief seeing as how this has been one hot summer. I’m noticing the usually lackadaisical Canada geese taking a few more practice runs each day at sunrise. In fact there’s a bit more early morning activity in the park in general; the blue herons are making an appearance again; some sort of white cranes or egrets hung around for a couple of days and then disappeared; even the gulls are circling more. Everyone seems to be waking up and preparing for the next chapter.

So I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that I have woken up the last couple of days with an unexplained restlessness. I have felt an almost physical pull to the mountains. I smiled when I realized that it is my natural migratory path as sure as the geese have theirs.

We have never intentionally put off our “summer” trip to the mountains until September or October, but it has just happened that way the past few years. Summers in the Rockies can be congested ~ Midwesterners consider Colorado prime vacation territory. And as hot as our summers have been on the plains, they are also getting warmer in the mountains. I moved to Colorado 33 years ago specifically to be closer to the mountains. So when Autumn rolls around I do feel an irresistible urge to lose myself (not literally) in their majesty. The crowds are fewer, the scenery more mellow as the aspens begin to gently paint their golden canvases.

A couple more summer obligations to put behind me and I’m in that Jeep headed west. And I can’t wait. Because for the first time I really see my role in the whole Nature scheme of things. I truly am a child of Nature.

Who knew?