One of our summer adventures has been to drive to as many waterfalls as possible within a 3-hour radius, then hike through the woods to find them. Sometimes it’s a family adventure, but sometimes I take just one of our kids at a time. It’s difficult to get one on one time in our house, but it is oh, so sacred.
A few days ago, it was my son Joshua’s turn. I woke him up early to go to a surprise hiking destination. We ended up going to what most of us would remember as the old 7 Caves. The caves are now closed in order to aid sensitive bat populations, but the hiking trails are still open as part of the Highlands Nature Sanctuary. My son and I chose our trail, grabbed a stick to knock down any spider webs, and off we went. I had been there before when I was much younger and the caves were the main attraction. Back then, in my rush to navigate through rocky tunnels of stalactites, I guess I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the beauty on the topside.
As my son and I explored, there were a few places where the trail was sprinkled with large rocks or logs, so our eyes were constantly scanning the ground. It had rained the night before and the rocks were wet, so I was being especially careful of my footing, so I didn’t slip and fall. I didn’t even realize where we were when Joshua stopped and said, “Mom, look up!” Somehow, I hadn’t even realized that we were under a gorgeous rock formation, sprinkled with ferns, wildflowers and a variety of colored moss. We both stood in awe, soaking it in. In the distance, we could hear running water. Could we have accidentally stumbled upon a waterfall? We walked toward the sound, rounded a corner, and both gasped at the scene in front of us. There was indeed a peaceful waterfall nestled in a valley of rock formations. A little bridge made of stone stretched across a stream in the forefront. The excitement on our faces to have found this little gem together was salve for my soul.
For a long time, we just explored. We noticed the details of the surrounding area that I had overlooked in all of my visits before. Animal tracks. Fossils. Spiders. Abundant plant life. The way the water flowed over ancient rocks. How cool would it be to hear age-old stories those cliffs could tell?
We spent the next five hours doing the same thing on two other trails. In total, I think we hiked about six miles that day. We shared a lot of “Wow!” moments together, and it is something that I will absolutely cherish. But even that pales in comparison to how cool it was to spend that time with my son.
I love that my family are noticers of the beauty that surrounds them. Often, one of them will grab my hand and say, “Come here! You’ve got to see this!” They will lead me outside to see the stars, or a sunset, or a new flower that has bloomed. It is a gift, not to be taken for granted. It’s also common for one of them to send me a picture of something beautiful that they think I would enjoy. A duck on the lake, something new sprouting in our greenhouse, a tiny tree fighting its way out of a rocky crevice, the first blooms of spring, or bright colors beginning to take over the trees in the fall. Right now, my oldest son is in Texas doing training with the Army. Amid the tanks, bombs, guns, spiders, scorpions and record-breaking heat, he sent me a picture of the sunset. I just love it when any of them do that! They look up. From their phones, from their problems, from the traffic, from the noise and distraction. They looked up long enough to pause and be thankful for something beautiful amid the chaos of life. Ahhh! At the end of a heavy day, doesn’t that one, simple thing help put everything into perspective?
It made me wonder. How much of our life do we miss because we are looking down? Maybe we are looking down physically and miss the cloud formations, the meteor shower, a rainbow, or the colors painted across the sky. Or maybe we are feeling down emotionally and miss a smile from that friendly neighbor, or that opportunity to hear a sweet voice on the other end of the phone.
Let’s be real for a minute. It all sounds great, but sometimes we just don’t feel like looking up, cheering up, sending prayers up, or putting our chin up. It’s just too difficult. Life it too heavy. But friends, here is another real statement: It is then that we need it the most.
Our lives are passing us by faster than we care to admit. Don’t miss it by looking down.
Denae Jones is a teacher and author of “Love, Joy, Peace”. She is also the co-author of “Everyday Grace for Mothers” and “Everyday Grace for Teens”. Her new novel “But, Even Now”, written with Jennifer Thomas, is available online at Barnes and Noble, Woodsong Publishing, and other places books are sold.
