I went for a walk in the country with my 15 year old son yesterday. It was such a beautiful day. Crisp air. Clear blue sky. Not a sound other than those produced by nature.
We were walking to an overlook point with a beautiful view of the
countryside. Just as we reached the point where we could see the view
(a few hundred feet from the lookout point), my son exclaimed what a
beautiful view it was. He broke into a run and said "let's run and get
there quickly". I was about to take the opportunity to remind him that
the journey is as important as the destination... But I stopped
myself.
I hadn't seen him run in an awfully long time. My sullen moody
teenager was reacting to natural beauty with all the glee and
wonderment of an unsullied child.
It was so sweet.
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1 comment:
That sounds like a great moment shared by 2 people who deserve it.
Sometimes one has to forgo enjoyment of the journey to feel the sense of accomplishment that reaching a destination provides. It makes us proud. It makes us feel. Your son was eager to get to the top - a very natural reaction when a prize awaits. His prize was not the top, nor was it the view. His prize was the overall true experience of nature and yours was seeing it projected through his youthful lens. I imagine he (and you)felt something that hasn't been felt in a long time, if at all.
I like to think that nature as well as youth can be our touchstones. They must remind us from where we've come and where we are going. Nature itself is both a journey and a destination but we can never see the vastness of the peaks and valleys that we've traversed until it's behind us. So why not run? Why not sprint? There will always be a journey behind us and an even greater one before us.
The 2 of you walking along that path together must surely be a comfort to you both. Hold onto it. Nurture it. Make it grow. (Because anything in nature that is not growing is dying.)
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