Let’s take a walk

I mentioned in my page about me that I love nature. The forest especially holds a dear place in my heart. I love the large boulder’s placed on mountain tops, The very old trees with trunks larger than I can wrap my arms around, when the river is shallow enough to walk across or deep enough to tube down, all of the animals that you HOPE you run into on the paths or trails, and the peaceful sounds the forest makes.

All of these things, bring peace and joy to not only my heart, but my soul as well. I love to see little kids or couples with their dogs, walking through these old places, talking excitedly about all they see around them, with eyes wide open to the places they may not have seen before or enjoyed before, and the fascination they experience as they continue exploring the lost world. Seeing other’s enjoy what I appreciate so deeply, brings a whole new reality to how wonderful these things are.

When I’m stressed out, which happens often with the hustle and bustle of life, or sad, I am drawn to any of the above to find peace with myself and the busy world. When I got married, my husband and I did not have any money for a honeymoon. He had not been to my secluded get away in the mountains of Pennsylvania and I desperately wanted to share it with him. I came up with a plan.

Both being seasoned adults, with bills coming out of our ears, we were living paycheck to paycheck, sometimes not making it from one to the next. Robbing Peter to pay Paul was often the situation we found ourselves in. I had to set things in motion. I began skimming off of the bills, food, household, everything that I could find to skim off of. It may have only been $5 here or $10 there, the money began adding up. We never missed it, due to it being such small amounts, and I began saving with out my husband knowing. My plan was in place, * wickedly laughing to myself.

After saving about $300, I began searching the cabins in the area I wanted. I knew he enjoyed camping in tents so I wasn’t worried about amenities like bathrooms in the cabin, though in national forests they usually have public bathrooms with running hot and cold water and rest rooms. I booked a cabin allowing pets, and looked forward to our trip, he had no idea. It was around two weeks prior to our trip date. I started hinting that I had a surprise for him. With us being so tight on money, I knew he didn’t think it would be much and expected even less, though appreciative and excited all the same.

The cabin only cost $189 for the entire week, That left a little more than $100 for spending. It was equipped with a refrigerator and stove. This would eliminate the need to eat out while we were there. The money left over, I would give to him to buy anything he wanted, from arrowheads to hunting knives, whatever he wanted and could afford was his for the taking.

Two nights before the trip, I couldn’t take it any longer. Did I tell you I’m terrible at keeping secrets? I sat him down , all serious like, saying we had to talk. I can only imagine what he was thinking since we, to this day, have only had 3 arguments total. I began with, I know you have been stressed out, so have I. I think we need to take some time for ourselves. He chuckled at this, knowing very well that we couldn’t afford to go anywhere. Before he could protest or say a single word, I threw the printed receipt for the cabin in front of him, walked to the computer and opened the saved website with photos.

I didn’t marvel at his surprise or confusion, instead told him to put it down and come over to where I was. I started telling him about the cabin while flipping through photos online. I could see his face begin to light up while throwing question after question at me about how I did this. I told him we would be leaving in 2 days and would be gone a week. Now my favorite part came, he smiled a grin of a child and hugged me tight. When he finally released me he told me how much he loved me and kissed me on the forehead.

The 2 days leading up to our trip I enjoyed the questions and excitement he displayed. I answered what I could and told him he would have to explore and find out for himself for the rest. Soon, we were packing up the car with our supplies, food, and the dogs. I hadn’t even told him in what direction we would be going until the day of the trip. We started on the road to my getaway. A common high way could be taken halfway through the trip, turning eventually into a two way road. I continued to guide him to our camping retreat until we got to the little town we would be staying in. His face lit up like a small child on a new adventure.

We signed into the cabin, only unpacking the food into the fridge, and upon his insistence and no complaint from me, we began exploring our surroundings. I took him to my favorite places and his joy was evident. The following week, we explored as much as we could in the small town filled with paths, natural beauty, hiking trails, rivers, and so on. Him, being a photographer, snapped picture after picture. We stopped at the little various shops and Indian reservation close by, it wasn’t until the last day there he finally decided to start making purchases. The very first thing he bought on the entire trip was a sterling silver ring for me. It was $15. The remainder of the items he bought were not for himself but our nephews instead.

The trip was amazing. He can’t wait to go back, neither can I. Oh how I long for the forest.