Complaint flees to the background when I surround myself with splendor.
I don’t hike, or swim, or ride a bike but merely sitting in the shadow of nature invigorates me. I have come to Colorado to see my stepdaughter in Boulder, a friend in Colorado Springs, and the glory of the mountains. How can I even think of complaining with beauty all around me?
I dropped Jenny Rosen in Manitou Springs and slipped down to the southern edge of Colorado Springs to see a woman who started as a client and has become a good friend. Last night she took me to a lovely lodge for dinner, from which we could see the mountains against which this town has been built. We spent a pleasant hour under the high beams of the lodge, sipping wine and trading stories of our lives, our families, our joys, and even, briefly, our sorrows.
Now, logged into wi-fi at her breakfast bar, I download several shots taken as Jenny and I drove into the mountains above Boulder. We parked in a lie-by and Jenny hiked down to Boulder Creek while I stayed safely atop near the car. I did not mind resting on a welcoming rock while she skittered down the path to the water’s edge.
My only mishap so far involved a rear-end collision with a Wendy’s assistant manager who smashed his license-plate into the bumper of the Prius, leaving an indentation and a hole the size of a dime. Oh golly ma’am, I’m sorry, he repeated as I stood gazing down at the first imperfection on my little blue car. My boss sent me a text and I was distracted. Lesson learned, young man: Don’t text and drive. I took a photo of his insurance card and parted company with the promise that I’d send him the estimate. I’ll give you a week to pay, I declared, in response to his request. After that, will let the insurance company handle it.
Fair enough.
I could not be angry. How can one be angry, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains? I’m sure the collective disposition of the residents here must be quite pleasant.
Jenny and I plan to reconnect In a few hours and drive further south, to the sand dunes. Perhaps we will; perhaps we won’t. She has found more splendor on the top of a mountain where her friend lives, and if she chooses to spend a full day there, I’ll be fine where I am, in the company of a kindred soul. This place seems idyllic. I have what i need for a relaxing day: A view of mountains to the west, a full pot of coffee, a pleasant patch of ground behind the house where I’ve seen the rustle of deer making their way through the morning air.
It’s the twenty-ninth day of the twenty-ninth month of My Year Without Complaining. My evolving life continues.