Daytripping

One of my favourite things to do on a lovely summer's day is to take a day-trip to wherever happens to suit our fancy.  I appreciate my own country mile so much more after I've spent a few hours enjoying other country miles.

Our most recent excursion saw us heading into eastern Manitoba as far as West Hawk Lake and then northwest-ish through the Whiteshell Provincial Park's lake country.  Shimmering lakes named Brereton, Red Rock, Nutimik, Jessica, Dorothy, Betulah, and finally Otter Falls nestled in Canadian Shield rocky outcroppings, lay waiting to be discovered like jewels in a bracelet of hammered rock.

 Around each curve of the winding and hilly narrow highway a new vista unfolded before us and I drank in the beauty and the serenity of God's nature.  Wherever we stopped briefly were God's people at rest in God's creation: fellow nature-lovers camping, swimming, playing beach sports, and enjoying each other's company before heading back into cities and towns for another week's work in the pavement-melting heat forecast for the coming days.

I felt at one with them and with all God's creation, in a way that recognized that I was part of this and could draw strength for my own week of work ahead from the same source.  It was the trees and forests, water and beaches, rock formations and marsh plants that gave me rest and renewal in the country miles I travelled.  I arrived home later in the day with my eyes and my mind full of the beauty of God's creation and a strong desire to write about it, to share it with you.

Sometimes I'm almost glad for the chronic condition that limits my movements, causes me pain, and prevents me from sleeping well, glad because it often renders me into a state of fatigue and feeling overwhelmed, and thus in a perfect position to recognize and welcome rest and refreshment for the spirit when they appear.  In the photo above, I'm looking thoughtful, beginning to understand that this day my husband planned is turning out to be exactly what I needed.  I was exploring the beautiful courtyard garden as we were leaving the Falcon's Nest Restaurant in Falcon Lake where we had just enjoyed our favourite treat, toasted cinnamon buns  and hot coffee.

I'd say this day was all about food and drink for the body: warm cinnamon buns in the morning; then sandwiches I'd packed for our picnic lunch later in the day;  food for my soul in the beautiful scenes laid out before my eyes at every turn; and drink for my spirit in the peace and serenity with which I slaked my thirst for God.