Post Camping

Our camping trip was so much fun, despite the rain which threatened on both Friday and Saturday to make life miserable. Our little group got it together, pitched tents and made a fire, and when the rain would let up we'd gather around the fire hanging out and eating and enjoying each other's company and the quiet of the woods. Friday night after everyone turned in the rains came down with a fury, and our tent leaked a bit. We had puddles on the floor in the morning but nothing got seriously wet and a tarp tossed over the roof took care of the problem on Saturday. Salt Springs Recreation Area is beautiful. Because it's near Daytona and in the Ocala National Forest, the nights are much cooler than they are here in South Florida and that was a welcome change (although Sunday night temps. dropped into the 40's and those of us with South Florida blood were a bit chilly when we ventured out of our sleeping bags!). Little One had a blast. For her the park was like a big playground; she had three days of being able to run around to her heart's delight and I think she inspired the rest of us to run around when the rains came. She cared nothing about whether it was raining; she was running around laughing and shouting and just being happy about being alive and being outside. She's my little hero. Sunday morning I got up early and walked alone down a path in the woods. The woods are where I feel the most at home, and I was basking in the songs of the birds, the hollow sound of a redheaded woodpecker knocking at a tree trunk, the whisper of the wind in the trees. When I arrived at the lake a mist was rising off of it, creating this mystical atmosphere, and I stood just trying to be a part of the whole scene, blending in with the birds, and the frogs and the trees and the squirrels playing in the woods. It was awesome. Now we're back in civilization again, but I feel refreshed. I was really feeling mentally, emotionally and spiritually drained before we left and the trip helped me to put my life back into perspective again. Standing in the woods, surrounded by nature and God and nothing else, I was really able to find my inner peace again. In a recent meditation my spirit guide told me that I would find my home within the woodlands, and now I know what he meant. At the time I thought I knew what he meant, but now I really understand, because when I entered into that meditation I was pleading for guidance and for a pathway to some deep peace and centeredness. Super cool.