Ducks (and cormorants) fly together!
Yesterday, Joe and I took the foster puppy back to the shelter, where she was adopted. Which was great, because no more cleaning up after a non-housetrained puppy, but it also made the apartment feel a bit emptier and much less chaotic. This was nice for Saturday evening, but today, we decided to get up early (for a Sunday) so we could beat the crowds to do something nature-y. This is one of the most beautiful areas to live in, but it can be really difficult to find spots far removed from crowds of people. Which is almost always what I’m looking for. So I did a search for low or moderately trafficked hikes that had some sort of water involved (which is pretty easy to find around here, many of the hikes take you through beautifully green forests and spit you out right on the beach), and we headed north this morning, bleary eyed but caffeinated.
It was completely worth it. This week has been, if I might hyperbolize a bit, THE WORST FUCKING WEEK IN THE HISTORY OF EXISTENCE.
Back in my old blogging days, I used to declare some weeks WORST. DAY. EVER. WEEK. This week would definitely qualify. And while yesterday, Joe and I both noticed we were feeling more like ourselves, we are still greatly in need of distraction. Thus the need for an itty bitty adventure.
So when we pulled up to the trailhead to find no other cars in the small lot, it felt a bit like kismet. Like, finally, something was going right for us this week. And the feeling continued as we began our hike, only briefly passing one other couple as we explored. The area we’d chosen was far away from the normal sounds of humanity. At one point, a flock of cormorants flew over us in a loose V and we could actually hear the sound of their wingbeats.
The trail we followed, like so many around here, led us to a small beach, also devoid of people. We spent some time exploring, enjoying the beauty around us. Hot from the walk down, I took off my shoes and socks and stuck my feet in the water, but only for a few minutes, because it’s still super, super cold. I sat in the sun, soaking it in, trying to shake off the heaviness that’s plagued me since I got the news on Monday, since last week when I had the biopsy, really, and it worked, even if it was just for a bit. It was long enough to remind me that these feelings aren’t forever. That I’m more than just a cancer diagnosis. That the real me is still in there, somewhere. And though my life will be revolving around my health for the near future, at least I know the real me will still be there when this is all over.
