We gotta get to a higher place
And I hope we all arrive together
We gotta get to a higher place
If we want to survive the weather
That cassette tape got played quite a bit in the old Ford Ranger back in the day. Facing the news today coming out of Las Vegas, followed up by the passing ( or maybe not passing yet #fakenews ) of Tom Petty made these lyrics seem kind of fitting for today.
This Monday and its’ horrible news was such a stark contrast to the amazing weekend I just experienced – one where I definitely was in a Higher Place. It was my youngest daughter’s seventh birthday on Friday, so the family and I went to Summer Lake Hot Springs to celebrate.
Between soaking and playing fetch with the dogs – I braved the cold morning temperatures and visited a few of my favorite local haunts.
hiking up into the hills with a float tube on my back
The first morning I visited a little alpine lake with my kick tube and leaky waders. My right foot was numb within the first 10 minutes. But that didn’t matter, the views and the company kept me warm.
I met back up with the girls and we visited a nearby stream. Kaydee got to play with a trout there.
grip n grin is okay for kiddos 🙂
And then we visited one of our favorite small-town spots in Paisley. If the girls could hold a tune and drop an album, this would be the cover shot, and Teagan would be the drummer:
That night a sandstorm rolled in around the basin as the sun was setting. The sight was quite amazing ( pictured up top ). We have watched many powerful thunderstorms roll over that ridge, but this was our first sandstorm during a sunset.
The next morning, Sampson and I went to visit a spot that we both love. I took him to this river when he was about 3 months old… he was still small enough to fit inside my sleeping bag on that trip!
Every time we go back there he immediately is transformed back into that little puppy – whining and jumping while I put my waders on, telling me to HURRY UP so he can go run amidst the dunes.
Sampson is fishy, and he put me on quite a few trout that morning. He gets super stoked whenever a fish is on and insists upon being right next to me while I land fish…
snag or a fish – only sampson knows the truth
Indeed the weekend got me to a higher place… we all need to find our higher place and spend some time there, as frequently as possible… because the reality we all live in day to day is hard. Get out there and get high with those you love – run through the sand dunes, play like a kid with a kid, soak and smile – you need those things to help survive the weather.
