Idle and Blessed

Some days it needs to be just us, Saturday-ing down a nearby trail. 

 Just sisters, a brother, a dad and a mom, distraction free. 

 With every step into the woods, some grumpiness falls away and some peace seeps in.   

 Alone, but together, rest is found. 

Rocks splash into water and we measure the success of our day in muddiness. 

 Leaves that become boats teach science lessons about currents.   

And the littlest among us is just a kid with her toes dipped in the water, happy to spend the day with those with which she feels the safest.

By the time we hike out, we have another memory added to our collection, connecting us deeper still. 

 

I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?

~Mary Oliver