STOP AND SMELL THE …. FOREST

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to go up to our family cabin.  It is in the heart of the Nicolet National Forest.  It’s about an 11 mile drive in on a gravel Township road, then about a mile in on our “driveway” which is a winding road through the woods.  If you know me, you know I have the ability to be high maintenance – but being up north is the most amazing place to be….with no electricity, running water and an outhouse about 50 feet away from the cabin.

The cabin was, and still is, the heart of my Dad.  He loved it there.  Growing up, we would spend a week at a time there.  Mom would take us to swim at Morgan Lake, and Dad would take us on adventures on the Dodge.  Yes, we have a 1945 Army Dodge jeep (still runs by the way) and we would go for rides around the lakes and never let a downed tree stand in our way!  When I was younger, my brother would drive and go as fast as the Dodge would go when we were going up a hill and inevitably, one of use would get pushed off the back of the Dodge and have to run to catch up and jump back on and continue the ride.

The memories I have of the cabin will always be close to my heart.  Silly things, like Dad convincing Anna she was eating poplar bark soup made from the trees around the cabin; or Mom rolling down the hill just because it was fun to do; or my sister Susie and I trying to drive the Dodge and managing to take down a tree and my Dad just shaking his head at us.

So when I sat in the cabin this weekend, I was flooded with memories.  So many of the people who created those memories are gone – Dad, Mom, Megan.  But when you walk into the cabin, you can still feel their hearts.  I sat in my Dad’s favorite chair on the screened in porch overlooking the small lake and just was present in the moment.  I inhaled the smell of the woods, listened to the birds chirp and sat in silence.  It was wonderful.

It made me realize that just sitting still is something I never do enough of.  To stop physically and mentally moving and just be in the moment.  It was exactly what I needed – because I had hit a wall and just struggled to focus.  That time sitting in silence gave me time to clear the ciaos out of my head and focus on the things that were important.

Make sure you take some time to take care of you.  If you care for kids, aging parents, or relatives, have a demanding job or just dealing with the struggles going on around you remember it is so important to stop, breathe, and focus on you.  Taking care of yourself gives you the energy to take care of those around you.

And if you are good to yourself, you will be good to those around you.  And that goodness will be returned ten-fold.

Until next time,

Anne