In the middle of a challenging week, we stole some love and peace.
We got them from a place flowing with both — the river that runs along our property up north. It only took an hour or two for the river to work its magic, and we returned to our busy lives with fresh perspective.
Rivers are great metaphors for life, both constant and ephemeral within a single glance. Spend a lazy float down a river and you can study the tragedy of a fallen tree and the growth that sprouts from its dying trunk.
Rivers swell and shrink with an earth-moving conviction and carve their marks into solid rocks. Eagles follow us on our luckiest floats, swooping and perching from the tallest branches and staring sternly as we float merrily past. We enjoy their regal beauty, but it occurs to me when I see them nosedive into the water that a very good day for an eagle is a horrible day for a trout.
You can chart whole life cycles on a single river float, glance at a strong young man and see the tiny boy he once was, wading for minnows and fishing for perfect rocks.
Seasons change, little boys grow, trees fall, fresh ones rise and, through it all, the river runs.
In a world full of triumphs we don’t always celebrate and tragedies we can’t ever explain, I’m always grateful to spend time near a river.
I hope you find some peace and love today, and maybe some time on a river near you.
