Recently, a friend told me that I needed to spend more time outside.  She was right, I’ve really missed it.  So I started kind of scoping things out and went to a local park looking for somewhere I could go that would be great for walking.  I’d forgotten how wonderful it is to be outside.  After a long hot summer it was such a great feeling to have the warm sun and cool air (okay, cooler air),  across my skin.  As I took my turn around the park I began to notice how green everything was and how benches were placed under the limbs of trees for shade.   Someone has done a lot of work here to make it wonderful for all of us to enjoy.  As I continued walking, I could hear children laughing while playing on the splash pad and their happiness was added to my own.

It was kind of perfect really.  I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to experience the joy of the day if I had not gotten out of my comfort zone and my normal routine to just “be.”  I’ve driven by this park hundreds of times but never stopped before.  Usually when I’ve driven by the park it  has been packed with people attending ball games or soccer.  Today, it was mid- morning and there were only a handful of people there with their dogs and children.

After my walk in the beauty of the park and fresh air, my entire being sighed.  At that moment it really hit me how stuck we get sometimes in our routines and how easy it is to not to notice the beauty all around us.  It was such a simple thing to go for a walk in the park and a very real blessing.