The Great Outdoors

When I see many people in person with whom I am friends with on Facebook, it often comes up that I am obsessed with the view from my apartment. Several times a month you will find me posting pictures of the beautiful New York skyline. Each picture is completely different with the sky and sun often dancing in different configurations.

As the lovely Ann Margaret Lyons once commented on one of the pictures: “No two pictures are the same!” Yes, almost every morning where the sun decides to shine, from my pillow I can see it rise. I feel at times my body is almost timed  to sense the warm glow through my curtains. Some mornings, I abruptly wake up with no alarm, grab my phone, and run to the balcony. It does have a mini Christmas morning feeling as I wait to see how God has painted the sky on these special mornings.

I was never the outdoorsy type. I used to hear friends talking about going camping and think to myself. “No way, I am never doing that.” In recent years, having taken many of my students on service trips and staying in some pretty God forsaken places, I have become much more open and appreciative of the joy that can come from experiencing the natural beauty that is all around us.

When people here I live in New Jersey, natural beauty is not the first thing that comes to mind. I wish you could hear the waves of the Hudson at night that rock me to sleep, or the peace that is present right now as I type this with the balcony door open and the night sky beginning  to fall.

The first night I was in the apartment I experienced a kind of healing that I have not been able to explain or fully understand. The water has truly been a source of peace and comfort to me in moments when I most needed it. Even if it makes no noise, its simple presence is calming and centering.

If there is anything I can appreciate about getting older it is deepening appreciation for certain simple things such as this. As the unofficial start of summer begins to wind down, I am excited for warm nights on the balcony, or mornings with my book or a journal. I feel like a kid looking forward to summer if just to be able to be outside.  Who would have thought a big-haired girl from the 80’s and 90’s who would have preferred a shopping mall over nature is pretty content to just sit and listen to a river. For this, and for the opportunity to live here, I am most grateful.