Off The Beaten Path
“It’s easy to get caught up in a busy life. We live in a time where life happens rapidly, but it’s in the slowing down that true moments happen.”
Spring is here.
It’s amazing how the change in the weather can make us feel. It can wake us up, energize us, keep us busy, or make us nostalgic.
When I was a little girl, Mom would give Anne, and me blackberry pickin’ pales and tell us we were going “on safari.” We would walk all around our farm picking blackberries. We would spend all afternoon following her every move and loving every second of it. I’m sure we looked like little ducklings in step right behind her. Every step she took, we took. For every blackberry she ate, we ate two. Ha!
As we got a bit older, Mom would throw us in her big ole station wagon, and we would go “back roadin.” We loved to roll all the windows down, turn the radio up, and hit the back roads out in the country. We would be singing at the top of our lungs, wind blowing in our hair, and having a blast. Sometimes, we would end up at a local swimming hole. Which was just a creek, but we loved it. On the way, Mom would stop and get us some chicken boxes from a country store and we would sit on big rocks and eat our chicken and catch tadpoles. It was marvelous! As a kid, I thought we were counties away from our home when, in reality, we were just off the beaten path.
Doesn’t life always get a bit sweeter off the beaten path?
I think so.
To this day, a song can come on the radio and instantly take me to that time. Like time travel, I’m in that station wagon singing my heart out with my family. I can eat a blackberry and be right back on that farm following Mom around with my little pale. If I take the time, I can still remember the tree limbs Anne and I swung from while out “on safari.” I can still feel the bark in my hands. I’m thankful every day that I know life off the beaten path. I’m blessed that those moments are still there. I just have to take the time to bring them back to me.
It’s easy to get caught up in a busy life. We live in a time where life happens rapidly, but it’s in the slowing down that true moments happen.
As we embrace this new season, try to enjoy the green grass and the warm breeze. If you find yourself on your phone too much, on social media arguing with friends over politics, or so busy you forgot what you did yesterday, I encourage you to head off the beaten path.
As for me, I’ve got safaris to go on and back roads to see, and I sure hope you do, too.
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