May 5, 2010

I watched myself struggle today with “trying” to have the kind of adventurous day that I “should” have, while I just really wanted to sit in a chair in the shade and read my book. It was a real taffy pull. The hike I began at 10am was aborted due to heat. I’ll try again tomorrow and leave at about 7am to wander the red desert of scarlet monoliths. I think we hiked about 3 miles, stopping many times for shade and water. We came back to our camp at about 11:30 and played in the creek that runs along the campground. Cold and clear and delightful. I busied myself with home chores for a couple hours, then sat down to read in the shade of the motherload. Jubilee napped next to me in her own patio chair. Didn’t I earn a nice relaxing afternoon? Why, then, did the internal monologue go something like this: “Here you are in this gorgeous country, full of adventure and marvel, and you’ve got your sunburned beak in a book! Why don’t you go play a video game and really waste the day!” Fortunately, part of my home chores included riding my bike into town for an ice-cold beer, which pretty much relaxed the internal haggler, and softened the taffy. It’s interesting how quick I am to judge each passing hour of my journey by how meaningful, exciting, or momentous it is. I did not know this judge resided within me.

When I say my prayers, I’ll pray for this judge to find a great new home in the reincarnated psyche of  Magellan.