Beauty/Feed the Senses

My wife and I live in Seattle. A wonderful city, especially in the summer. Additionally, Washington State is blessed with many splendid and varied environments to explore as are so many places in the U.S. and around the world.

Now, take a minute and wherever you live, think of what outdoor activities might await you. How long has it been since you just climbed in the car and took a road trip? Okay, you're caught up with family and or work, and time has just zipped by. But now that you're thinking about it, why not just get out a map and start imagining where you might go in this wild and wonderful world of ours.

Our lives are so scheduled and driven by forces that feel often beyond our control. Yeah, you're coping, but the daily grind takes it's toll in insidious ways. Perhaps you're heading straight for a heart attack and you don't even know it. Think that's extreme? Well, it's not. It happened to me and it hit me like a train out of no where.

Perhaps if I had taken more time off, if I had let off the pressure once in a while. No one really knows. But what I do know and what I want to pass along to you today, is a reminder:

This life is short. Don't spend all of your time working and providing for others. You must treat yourself as a dear friend. Take the opportunity to indulge the senses. It is a wonderful elixir for the soul and body. It is easy to forget that we have a kinship to the elements, we are composed mainly of water. We are literally the offspring of the stars, as it was-eons ago-that the primordial ingredients for life fell from the heavens and you are a direct decedent of that early lineage.

Visit your home in the wilderness. Take the time to reconnect with your real family, the trees, the rocks and the rivers. Yes, you must eventually return to your social existence, but you can bring the silent strength of that connection back with you. Let it permeate you and carry it in your heart. Your life will be better for the experience.