Hi friends, how are you? I hope well. Today’s post is an inspirational one: a peaceful feeling day in the mountains. I liked that title, though it does nothing for me SEO-wise. 😜

Currently I am downloading footage onto my hard drive for next week’s youtube video with Bo and Mia cuddled beside me, in typical morning form. We’ve got our morning routine down at this point. They wake me up. I let them out. I feed them. I let them out again (because they were too excited to do their business the first time 😂). I get my coffee and look out at Frye Mountain, the mountain I see every day from my home.

 

Look Around You & Appreciate Where You Are

When I lived in Miami, Florida, I took for granted the view of palm trees outside my apartment window. The last apartment I lived in with my husband did not have the view of my very first adult apartment. That view was stunning… I saw a pool, ocean stretching to the horizon and a faint outline of buildings in the distance. It was peaceful. So, of course, that second view from a far more modest apartment (the one we bought and still own), just didn’t fascinate me the same way. And yet, now I wish I would have appreciated it. I haven’t seen a palm tree in many mornings, but I do have my Frye Mountain.

 

 

Frye (as I affectionally refer to him – yes for some reason he’s a him to me haha) has many looks. In the morning, he’s usually covered in a blanket of that signature Smoky Mountain smoke. Today he is more clear, there are shadows revealing his grooves and he’s a blueish-green because spring is here and most of our forests are greening up. In the evening, he turns a deep blue-red. It’s the weekend, so Jaime will wake up in an hour or so, and we can move to our patio to finish coffee there. It’s a better view of Frye.

 

 

I never write about these ordinary moments, my mountain morning routine (probably a better title for this post hah). In fact, it’s because I take it for granted as I did my many slow mornings in Coconut Grove, Miami staring at the finches and palm trees. Why do we do that? It’s so easy to forget our surroundings and lose appreciation for them.

 

A Day In The Mountains

Today we will go on a trail nearby with my parents (who are visiting), take the dogs and chill. That’s where I’ve been, honestly. Focused on living slow, being appreciative and not over-extending myself. In fact, this week’s Youtube video was exactly that. Slow living and a journal excerpt from me. Did I mention it’s my birthday? Well, it was on Thursday. I’m still contemplating a birthday post as I typically do. Or… maybe not. Perhaps for 34, a post on the ordinary moments (and trying to see the extraordinary in them) is okay. It feels fitting.

 

 

I am sending you peace wherever you are right now. 🌄

Ps. If you liked this post, you may like my memior, Embrace That Girl.

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