I have mentioned before about growing up in a very small town. It sat atop a mountain with winding roads and endless trees where the air was always a little cooler and breezier. I spent most of my childhood outdoors enjoying the fresh air and sunshine. As an adult, I often long for those simpler times when the only worry I had was making sure I got off the bus in time to catch my afternoon show and what snack I wanted to eat before dinner. Adulthood is hard. I know y'all know. I know you've heard it before. Sometimes I think to myself, if I could just cash in these hectic moments for moments like I had when I was young, life might be just a little better. And then I wonder to myself, who or what says I can't?
One thing I am the most guilty of as an adult is not intentionally living life. Not stopping in the moment to fully experience things as they happen. Even outings with my family, my brain is often on the go worrying about timelines, when we will eat, what we will eat, if this is going to affect nap time or bedtime or just our daily routines in general. It is so hard within today's society to just stop and actually be. Be in the space. Be in the moment. Be with those we love. Be a part of the memory. Moving to Washington brought a lot of new to our life. Some was met with turmoil and upset from more than one member of our household, but other aspects were met with awe and wander. I am not lying when I say that pretty much every place I drive around here has some gorgeous view of the ocean, or the mountain ranges, or flowers and tall trees. Washington offers so much outdoor beauty, I am often left speechless, my breath taken away by the sight before my eyes. As a photographer, this immediately sparks so much joy in my heart as well as endless ideas for photo shoots! I have Washington to thank for the influx in creativity and the drive to take the images that I do and for the loads of art that I have created with each and every shutter. Washington is a great place to learn to just BE.
One of the goals I set for myself recently, as well as a goal my husband and I have set together is to be more intentional with our time. Intentionally attend to things that matter and intentionally set aside the things that do not. In today's world, this is hard. When you are expected to keep your phone glued to your hand and answer anything and everything within a few seconds, it can become very taxing mentally and physically. So our goal involved intentionally letting people know if we were taking family time, intentionally taking family time, and intentionally sticking to it. This meant more little adventures, more date nights, more outings, more board games, more life. With my husband and his career, it is very hard for us to practice a lot of the things that we try to because he is gone so often, making these intentions even more important. While he may be gone often, I still try to fill my moments while he is way with as much intent as possible. Something that I thoroughly enjoy when deciding to take intentional time is to go on outings. While I am a huge homebody, I do love seeing new things and witnessing the beauty of the world. Washington is full of it. So, while family was in town, we decided to put one of Washington's many beautiful wonders on our travel list and hit the road.
After a gorgeous drive through winding roads that reminded me so much of home that it made my heart instantly happy, we arrived at Mount Rainier National Park. This park seems endless and offer's various sight-seeing pull off points, as well as numerous park access points to enjoy all aspects of the area. You could easily fill one weekend here a month and still not see all of the parks beauty. There are also trails galore from easy paved walking trails to more moderate extensive hikes. We opted for an easy loop as there were small children in tow. For this visit, Paradise, Rainier was at the top of our list. Once we arrived to the location, we parked near the Paradise Inn and visitor center to hit up the paved trails nearby. There is a gift shop that offers trail maps, but we used a sign at the trail head that showed all the winding routes that were available. The loop we decided on was the Skyline trail up to Myrtle falls, then back tracked to water fall trail to Dead Horse and then back down to the parking lot. It was an easy loop with the most gorgeous views I had ever seen. Each trail head was marked with name and distance so that you knew where you were going. Park rangers were also walking around leisurely and readily available to answer any questions or direct in case you got lost. On our ventures, we were lucky enough to spot a bear just up the mountain side. There were also chipmunks everywhere that were not shy at all and would come and sneak a snack right from your hand before scurrying off to their burrows. The air here was crisp and clear. There was a nice cool breeze and nothing but quiet. It's amazing how peaceful the outdoors can be and how peaceful being among the wilderness can make you feel. Luckily, the clouds were few and the sun was shining. The views of the mountains were amazing. The fields were covered in wild flowers. We also went early morning during the week when it was a little less crowded. Visiting Mount Rainier was one of the immediate "bucket list" items that we added to enjoy while being stationed in this area. So far we have been lucky enough to visit twice. I can not wait to go back during this season when the leaves begin to change. No matter what it is being thrown your way or what you may be dealing with or how long that to do list is, it is not going anywhere. The life troubles will be there. Life just happens. It is up to us to be intentional and fill it with as much positive as possible. Get out with your family or loved ones. Go to a market, see a movie, take a walk. Set aside the daily tasks, phones, work, etc. And just Be.
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