Beauty All Around Me

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.

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