Two Sets of Tracks

Last night I was going stir crazy… the virus… the uncertainty… our slow-to-arrive spring…everything. I started a pizza crust rising, and with an hour to spare, I took Whiskey for a walk on the lake. About one-third of the way into our walk, I turned around. I stopped. I took this picture.

There were two sets of tracks. I realized… I was walking straight ahead toward my goal (the point) with my hands in my pockets and my head down. Whiskey was romping along, looking up at the birds in the sky, following his nose, following his feet, and following his heart.

Don’t walk with your head down and only the goal in sight.

I had a lovely walk once I started looking around. There was a full moon in the sky just ahead of me, framed by the beautiful White Pines on the point. The birds were singing. When we rounded the point, we found two more sets of tracks. OTTER TRACKS! We found tons of otter tracks. The otters had been out playing! They were slipping and sliding into the pools of water that form on top of the ice under the cedar trees. Whiskey sniffed at the tracks with great curiosity. I let him play and follow the tracks around the lake until it was time to get back to that pizza crust. The sun was warm, and I’m pretty sure we were both smiling.

I truly believe this long-winter, with a slow-to-come spring we are all stuck in, will pass. When it does, I hope we have all lived our lives in a way that we can treasure what has happened during this time… the friendships and relationships that have been born and grown, the fortitude we have found, the precious moments of “togetherness” we have found, even while being apart. Take a walk, listen to the sounds of nature humming all around us. For once, the hustle and bustle of life isn’t drowning out the sounds of birds singing!