Reverb 10 - Moment

Prompt: Moment. Pick one moment during which you felt most alive this year. Describe it in vivid detail (texture, smells, voices, noises, colors)

Last January I pushed myself to do something I might have avoided in the past; I went on a church youth group ski trip as an adult chaperon. Skiing, great. 50 kids, good in moderation. Overnight bus trip sleeping sitting up in your seat, bad.

It was Sunday morning, day two of the trip. I had slept well the night before and felt rested. I was amazed with myself that I had persevered through the bus trip. I had survived the mayhem of that many kids and their “loosy-goosey” youth directors. I had enjoyed the kids and the other women on the trip. Despite my fears of being too out of shape or too old, I had a great time skiing the day before. My mood was almost as high as the mountain I stood on.

Wanting a few moments alone, I separated from my group to do a relatively short, overlooked run through the trees. The snow was little deeper off the beaten path, the run was a lot narrower. The trees called to me and asked me to stop and commune in their world for one short moment as I passed by. So I did.

I found myself standing alone near the top of the mountain. The snow on the ground bore the tracks of those who had gone before me, but I could see nobody, hear nobody. The silence was so great that it had its own vibration, its own sound. The air was crisp and cold with little ice crystals dancing before my eyes. My cheeks tingled and my eyes felt the cold. It wasn’t sunny, but the sky was full of colors: storm clouds, white clouds, sunrays peeking through.

In that one precious moment, I felt peace. I was a tiny part of a world that is so large, so beautiful, that I could hardly fathom it. Nature hugged me that morning.