A Walk in the Woods

I’m in California this week visiting with three of my daughters. Today we went to Muir Woods and wandered under Redwood trees that are hundreds of years old. Standing underneath them you can’t even see to the top and the trunks are huge. Moss padded the side of the trees and green foliage covered the ground. People crowded along the walkway, many of them speaking French or Spanish, but all amazed at the wonders.

After the walk through the woods, we went to Muir Beach Overlook to eat lunch. The cold wind made it difficult to eat, but the view, hundreds of feet above the ocean, was spectacular.

While we walked and climbed, I mainly listened to the chatter of my grandchildren. They grumbled, laughed, teased, and made jokes. But the best came from the two oldest boys who kept finding depressions or hollowed out trees and shouting, “Hey, look! A hobo could live here.” I was so busy listening that I think my daughters thought I wasn’t paying attention. But I was. I watched as the teenager carried his one-year-old cousin on his shoulders. I listen to the girls talk about their children. I watched them mother. (They are wonderful mothers!) And I thought about how blessed I am. There is nothing as wonderful as having so many things to be grateful for all in the same place and time—family and nature. Who could ask for anything more?