A couple of years ago, the boys and I had a Saturday planned full of going to see firetrucks, playing at the park, a picnic, feeding the ducks and on and on. Chris was of course working and I was ready to get out of the house and away from endless cycle of domestic…chores… no I mean hell. We were off to a good start but not long into it, with the youngest perched on my hip, another began to melt down and it quickly got ugly. Oiyyyeee. I was NOT in the mood. My patience had run out.
I went into autopilot mode, sweeping them all in the car in record time. I turned the music up, put the windows down and glared into the rearview mirror daring them with my tired eyes to make even a squeek. Now what? No way was I going home.
So I just began to drive. Out of town and up the mountains we climbed. Each mile seemed to relax us all. The beauty of Colorado is powerful indeed. Westward we went. Following an internal compass we turned North. The air was warm and lovely, the sky its famous blue. We wound our way up and over, and left and right. I could have driven all day. Of course however, nature called and my guys needed a pit stop.
At a little pull off, we found the most perfect corner of the world. The boys gravitated to the river throwing rock after rock after rock. Slowly shoes, shirts and shorts came off. I pulled out our picnic and feasted. We stayed the whole day in that spot. I felt myself decompress, forgiving (them and more importantly myself) and soaking up every sense of the afternoon. The sun began to set on the canyon wall and my toe-headed boys were glistening as much as the water rushing by them. I will never forget that all encompassing warm glow.
Happy and tired, the boys climbed into the car and were fast asleep before I could even get turned around to head home. I enjoyed the quiet, the sunset and the gratitude of how the day had unexpectedly turned out so well. That day carried me for a long time and I can still go there when I need to escape a bit. The week following, I painted this canvas. It feels playful to me and evokes pure happiness.