What makes a perfect day?
Is it foregoing the opportunity to sleep in on a Saturday morning? Rousing and rushing because you did sleep too late but need to meet the a 10 am deadline to meet the hiking club for the scheduled hike to Kiakho mountain?
Is it rushing too fast but needing that jolt of caffeine that Timmy’s (Tim Horton’s) is famous for? You have time for the drive thru before arriving at the hike meeting area. Your favorite dispatcher, Nolan, takes your order for coffee. Nolan is an awesome dispatcher. His cheerfulness gives you the boost to start the best day possible.
Is it getting to the trail head and seeing your breath in the cool mountain air and hoping that you layered your clothing so you will be warm enough as you climb higher?
Is it the first WOW you utter when there is a break in the tree line and you have your first opportunity to admire the view? There had been slash burning in the area and a smoky haze hung in the air and provided a mystical view of the hills and the yellow larch showing their color.
Is it sitting on a log having a snack and listening to the forest sounds? Breathe in. Listen. You hear the screech of the hawk soaring above looking below for prey. You hear the shrill call of the northern flicker as it searches for a bug infested tree. You hear the angry caw of the crow who is probably having a discussion with the hawk as to who is entitled to this particular airspace. You hear the chatter of the two squirrels nearby scolding you for trespassing in their backyard. You make sure to leave two bites on your apple core and intentionally drop a few walnuts that can be found and stored in a hidden hollow for a winter treat. And, if you listen, far in the distance you hear the sound of highway traffic.
Is it at another viewpoint where as you look across you see Fisher Peak and the Steeples with a dusting of snow and far below in the distance you see Cranbrook?
Is it walking past different colors and varieties of mushrooms or watching the movement of light and shadow as it dances through the trees?
Is it reaching the top of the mountain and uttering WOW and Oh My? Wow because in 360 degrees is the beauty of the misted hills and the stunning color of the larch. It is Oh My because 1,750 metres below you can make out landmarks in Cranbrook.
Is it walking the road back down the mountain and stopping all too frequently to say WOW and admiring the jaw dropping scenes around you of the Western larch in all their Fall splendour and magnificence?
Is it returning to the vehicle and taking a lower road so you get a glimpse of Kiakho mountain that you just finished climbing?
Is it rushing home, because you are running late again, getting dressed in dinner attire and making it to the restaurant just in time to see a stunned colleague who was totally surprised by his daughters, family and friends who gathered to celebrate his 60th birthday?
What makes the perfect day? It is the synchronicity of all these moments swirling around you creating a magic that evolves into this perfect day. You cannot and will not always have a perfect day. But when serendipity aligns those moments of a perfect day…. Stop. Breathe in. Savor. Let go. Then move forward to create special moments that may, in the future, once again align to create a perfect day!
