I took the day off today. I had a long list of errands to run and a dog recovering from surgery to tend to. My first 15-minute errand turned into a three hour affair. Things were not going as planned.
Just as I sat down to some lunch and to ice our dog’s bruised leg, the phone rang. It was a friend. He noted that the weather was nice and asked if I would like to go for a walk. I immediately said no and explained how off-track my day was. I was thinking, there is no way I will get everything done today. He said OK and rang off.
I took a bite of my lunch. I looked at the dog and could see he was comforted having me there. I picked up the phone and called my friend back. I asked, could he wait thirty-minutes? He said yes.
We drove to a nearby park. We walked through a forest of trees bare from the chill and winds of fall. We took note of several birds and the newly exposed and vacated paper wasp nests that hung from branches near the trail. We sat for a few minutes by the river and listened to the rush of the water.
We noted how cool it was in the shade and how hot we got climbing back up the ridge as we returned to my car from the river’s edge. We talked about work; we talked about holiday plans; and we talked about life. He told me of how his father in-law had passed away earlier today and how the family was at peace with his passing.
When I dropped my friend back off at his house, he asked me to wait a minute. He ran inside and came back out with two loaves of bread. He told me that he had baked them. I said that I did not know he baked. He grinned and said, there is a lot you do not know about me. I thought, I know more now than I did this morning.
As today draws to a close, I look at my to do list. Only a few items are checked off, but I can not imagine a more complete day. ‘Tis the season indeed.
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