Quote of the Day: “Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.” Madame Curie
On Saturday, Joe, Alex, Sue B., Jill and I met at 5:30 A.M. and traveled up Big Cottonwood Canyon. We started hiking at a trail head on Guardsman’s Pass road and 12 miles later dropped down into Big Water in Millcreek Canyon. This is part of the Wasatch Back Trail that goes for hundreds of miles in the Wasatch Mountains and one of my favorite hikes. You start out climbing a gradually steep road that gives you tremendous, and yet, close views of Jupiter Peak. As you continue on, you turn towards the west and to your left is the huge expanse of the mountains surrounding Brighton and Solitude ski resorts. The trail climbs for a bit and then you drop down to Desolation Lake and then climb again to be rewarded with views of the Canyons and Park City ski resorts. This trail helps you orient yourself to the geography of the mountain resorts surrounding Salt Lake. Once again, the wild flowers were beautiful. We saw many fields of Showy Fleabane- small purple flower with yellow centers and then lots of yellow patches of, perhaps, Western Groundsel. My favorite, though, is the Indian Paintbrush, in shades of red and almost purple. The hike was a great place for me to be on Saturday- I crave nature and find it healing to the soul. There must be some connection between exercising the body that propels the brain to process information. I don’t know if there is scientific proof of that, but I can tell it works for me. I could think about Lynne, feeling somehow more connected to her through the woods.
As I’ve said before, Lynne was my tennis partner in the late 80s and early 90s. We both took up tennis at the same time, along with my Mom after watching sister Jennifer play as a junior player in SL and then in college. Jeni inspired us to want to take up the game. All three of us, Lynne, Mom and myself took to it with a passion. We couldn’t get enough of it and so we progressed pretty fast. Those were the days when playing tennis was pure joy- no ratings to worry about, no pressure to be on a certain team, just joy in doing something that you loved. So on Monday, I played tennis at the Sportsmall with my favorite group and it happened to be on the same court that Lynne and I had won a championship match years before. Lynne was a great player because she was gutsy. She never seemed to get very nervous on the big points and that spilled over to me and helped me go for my shots at crucial times in a match. So that started me thinking about what someone leaves behind when they leave this world- sometimes it’s a letter telling you all the things that were important to them and what they want for you in life, sometimes a favorite memento or piece of jewelry but what if they could leave you one of their great qualities or talents? What if Lynne could transfer to me her fearless attitude? And then it came to me. In a way, she could leave that to me if I would just try to emulate her spirit in that manner. She could be my mentor from a different realm. And wouldn’t that be a great way to honor her? Wouldn’t that mean that part of her would certainly live on in my heart?
Never underestimate the power of a card or a plate of cookies! I received such a heartfelt message from Carl Harvey, the Skyline SBOs- who make sure I know I’m not forgotten, and Carol and John Skeen, who are truly angels here on earth.
Sue B., Joanie, Jill- Wasatch Back Trail- Sunrise!
Carol Skeen’s famous homemade, amazingly delicious cookies!
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