Go take a hike. No, seriously go take a hike.
I spent an entire week in the Great Smoky Mountains for family vacation this summer and it was a week filled with adventure. I have never understood why I loved the outdoors so much until I found myself sitting on a rock, underneath a waterfall that was sending out a fine mist as it hit the water behind me. I felt peace, but not the kind of peace you get when you turn in your midterm two minutes before it is due. The kind of peace where you feel whole. Everything around you is working in harmony. The birds are chirping, the water is flowing at a steady pace and the trees are swaying just enough for the limbs to move the leaves, allowing them to carry the soft sound of the wind. You are in a state of complete and total bliss, and everything for that moment, no matter how long, is perfect.
Bliss (v.) - a state of perfect happiness, typically so as to be oblivious of everything else
That was the first time during the trip that I felt that way but throughout the week I found myself slowly staying in that state of bliss. We found ourselves constantly going out, looking for our next adventure, even if it meant going off the beaten path (literally, sorry mom but at least we didn’t get hurt). My favorite spot was one that we found the day before we left. We were headed to hike up to a waterfall when we couldn’t find anywhere to park so we decided to skip that one and find another. As we’re heading down the mountain the brakes on the car started getting too hot so we had to pull over and that’s when we found it. You could barely see the path, rocks, moss, and fallen trees littered the way but at the end of it was the most serene view. Rocks that had fallen down the mountain made the perfect spot in the stream. It was picture perfect to say the least. We hopped along the river on these rocks, even climbing up a slick boulder to take a picture. It was perfect. It made me realize that a stream, with a few rocks was able to turn our misfortune into the greatest experience of vacation. It was in this moment that I realized how this forgotten, rocky stream related to my life in more ways than one. Like we were hopping along the rocks in the stream, we often hop from one challenge to the next in life. Sometimes we’re faced with a scary obstacle (the slick boulder) that makes us use our wits to overcome. However, just like the stream, no matter how many rocks are thrown in our path, we will continue to flow, as strong and more beautiful than before. I didn’t realize that what my soul was searching so long for was literally right outside of my door. Nature is all around us. Ready to take us in and show us a whole new world, that is if you’re ready. If you are ready for adventure, to find bliss and be at peace. Go take a hike. See where the journey takes you, even if it is off the beaten path.
