we found fall and it is magical

The weather has been changing here in Colorado. The mornings are crisp and cool, the days are still hot. I love this time of year. We sleep with the window cracked open so we can feel the cool night air as we fall asleep under blankets for the first time in months.  You can feel the change of season in everything you do...it feels good to have a change. I'm always ready for a change when life throws curveballs my way...I want to move past it, be a part of something new.  I want to breathe new air and look at my surroundings in a different light.  

Yesterday was the perfect fall day. The perfect day to take in something new. Martin surprisingly had a Saturday off from work (which never happens) so he came up with a plan that would take us on a tour of the mountain roads and we would be able to spend some much needed time together.  It felt good to get away from the noisy city and to just sit for hours next to my husband in the car. 

Van Morrison and Bob Dylan serenaded us as we climbed higher and higher. We had the windows down and could feel the temperature drop and the air became cool and fresh.  I didn't mind that the wind was whipping my hair around into knots, it felt nice having the breeze against my face and the warm sun on my arms.  I could see Martin out of the corner of my eye, beaming...taking deep breathes of mountain air. He loves the mountains, I think they help ground him back to reality and give him a new dose of energy.

 We pulled off to the side of the road...it was peaceful and quiet.  All you could hear was the wind in the pine trees and the grasshoppers chirping.  I looked around asking myself, "Is this really where I live? Why do I not appreciate this more?" I need to appreciate this more.

We kept driving, twisting and turning up the mountain.  It was just us on the road for a long time. I kept thinking about what Walt Whitman had written..that becoming the best person means growing in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth. If we all took in the amazing world that we live in each day, how could we want to do anything bad or wrong? I don't think we could...we would all be so mesmerized by beauty that we would only do beautiful things. 

.  .  .  

We drove until we were forced to stop because of all the people creating a parking lot in the middle of the street. What could they be looking at that was causing such a commotion? A moose?  

Oh.

It was breathtaking. 

I wish it could have just been Martin and I. We would have sat down by the side of the road and just taken it in slowly for hours. 

But we weren't the only ones enjoying the scenery so we dodged the tourists and screaming children back to our car. Took one last look at the golden Aspen trees and headed to Lyons, the small town where we had gotten married.  

We enjoyed our lunch at Oskar Blues, the local brewpub, while a Polka band played below us on the patio.  We felt the warm sun on our faces and looked out at the mountain where we had said our vows. We people watched until we were both too hot and craved some shade. 

I wish we had more days like this, instead of our hectic daily schedules. But I guess when they are so far and few in between we don't take them for granted and we soak in every moment together.

We ended the day up in Fort Collins and decided to surprise my parents. We talked for a while on the back porch while the sun began to set. I loved being able to go home, even if it was for a short time. And I loved being in the mountains. I can see why Martin loves them so much, they put your life back into perspective. When you look at something so much grander than you, the only thing that seems to matter is making your life the way you want to live it. Forgetting about all the things society is telling us to care about...letting go of anything that makes you unhappy. 

I am learning how to do this and I feel like with each changing season I am getting better at it. 

It truly was a perfect day.