With more and more people getting vaccinated and Covid-19 restrictions loosening little by little, I am slowly putting myself back into the world again. I have visited my favorite parks, dug my toes in the sand, had some family over for Easter, and even went to the grocery store. Things are starting to feel normal again, well… kind of.

What I noticed is that I’d missed the little things. The way rosebuds look when they are just about to bloom, the sound of waves crashing, the feel of salty ocean air on my face, the sound of children laughing as they go down the slide, and the smell and sight of cherry trees in spring with their tiny little white and pink petals that cover the ground.

I don’t know how many times I’ve walked by these little things and paid them no mind. When things were “normal” I didn’t appreciate the world around me in all of its splendor. I guess it’s when we are deprived of something for so long, we begin to appreciate it that much more.

I can only tell you how being back in nature has made me feel; Joyous and Free. I was happy to be present in the moment and realized how important it is to look back on this year and get busy living again.

I hope you stop and smell the roses…

I wrote this when I visited the beach a few weeks ago. The ocean inspired me to feel like a poet.

Through the mist, I’ll find my soul… Salty air, Wind that blows in my hair, and the feeling of Freedom once I’m there.