After a tough week last week, the weekend allowed me to refocus and get centered again.  Balance is hard sometimes!  Albert Einstein once wrote, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.”  So much truth!

Today is the tenth anniversary of the death of my dad.  It is always a hard day for me.  Last night, I started reliving moments of that day before his death.  I remember being in his hospital room (he had just had surgery), joking with him and his doctor.  His doctor was a fly fisherman, and we made plans to meet at a favorite spot on the river for evening fishing.

This past weekend I took a road trip to visit an old friend.  It was a long drive up to the Adirondacks of New York.  Despite the many miles, it was a relatively easy drive.   Despite the incessant rain, it was a fantastic visit.  There was no fishing, no hiking, and no camping.  However, it was a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with my friend.

Time passes.  Life happens.  If we are lucky, we wander through it with a few friends who accept us exactly as we are, and we them.  I am so blessed to have people in my world that are exactly that type of friend.

I missed writing last week.  My head has been a sea of thoughts…flashcards… moving from one thing to the other at the speed of light.  Over the past few weeks, I have had trouble focusing on any one particular thing.  I have not been sleeping well at night.  I realized this weekend I have been struggling with the question:

What is my purpose?

I love learning.  My journey into photography has been a huge learning curve.  There has been much joy; and with all things new, there has been frustration.  My camera is certainly more sophisticated than I am, and has more potential than I can imagine.  Rather than try to learn everything in one fell swoop, I have tried to bite off tiny pieces at a time.  My friend in Low Places has been my greatest teacher/coach, giving me small lessons along the way to make my learning practical.  This week, I have spent time learning more about auto focus.

As I have shared many times before, I like my routines.  My day-to-day makes me feel secure.  I think many of us are like that in some way or another.  There is a rhythm to routine.  However, it can also become a trap.

I can get stuck in the comfort zone.

When I am flowing through my days without effort, I do not push myself.  When I do not push myself, nothing changes.  I am not saying every day needs to be a full-court press to conquering the world.  However, making even small changes in my routine stimulates me to grow and expand the world around me.

This past weekend Hubby and I traveled south to visit our friends at Rider’s Backfield Farm.  They have been friends of mine for nearly 30 years and spending time in their home is just like being in my own.  They live right along the Blue Ridge Mountains with an amazing view.  We ate good food, drank good drink, and celebrated a birthday with a homemade German chocolate cake. 

Today I had to stop.   I am not one of those people where “stops” come naturally.  I have a nasty head cold.  I am not a good patient.  I am not someone who is sick often, nor for long.  I have learned along the way that when it happens, the best thing I can do is stop and honor the need for my body to heal.

It does not mean I am happy about it.

I enjoy watching rebirth of the sleeping world in springtime.  Although there are still spots of snow in the yard at the homestead, the tips of the trees are starting to swell into buds, and the bird song has started to shift to a new melody.  Spring is a magical time.

Despite the fact that there is a deep blanket of snow on the ground, the wind is howling, and the temperature is well below freezing, I am thinking of spring.  I am excited about the prospects of getting Dixie back out on the road.  True to form for an old truck, she needs some attention before the first voyage out.