The Optimism of “October”: Mohican State Park
In my estimation, there is no “ordinary” day. Admittedly, not every Wednesday will afford you a mountain-top view, but there are still an awful lot of lovely vistas to enjoy on the journey up. And they’re all “limited time only” offers… because each is truly a once-in-your-lifetime experience. Might as well enjoy them…
I had a little extra “thinking” time last week during an MRI (long, boring, and thankfully uneventful story). Physically pinned and morally obligated to a state of stillness, my mind rebelled a little and ran all over the place. Places I’ve been, people I’ve known, ideas that need definition and/or a “save” button… Life is never a stationary experience. Change is normal, completely common, and takes you to new places. I kind of like that.
A friend of mine has been skidding on “rough” for some time. I told her it was highly 
unlikely that her life six months from now could ever fit into her present definitions and situations. Sometimes that is all we need to know… That our lives are moving and that we will soon find ourselves in another place whether we actively contribute to the change or not.
Now, that is a thrilling thought that will either lift or plunge the individual heart…
Russet-tinged autumn is finally here. I alternately dread it (knowing that it will dead-end into a long-ish grey winter sometime in late November), and then fear that the blaze of color will never actually arrive. But it’s here. Diminished sunlight is steadily revealing the true colors of the woods.
In between the challenges that sidle up to us all, I’ve fit in more than my share of woods’ time this past week. I’m including 
some photos from Saturday’s hike through Mohican State Park. I didn’t have time for it, which is precisely why it was so necessary.
The Clearfork Gorge overlook and Pleasant Hill Dam made for some nice, if slightly crowded photo ops.
The true “get-away”, however, was achieved by wriggling through some fiery red sumac and thick sticky briars…past trees rubbed bare of their bark by bucks prepping their antler racks for battle…down the side of a small gorge to a forest floor carpeted in autumn colors. 
Beauty could be captured frame-by-frame, and stillness crept close riding the fragrances of autumn…
I’ve switched servers and am working on audio/video updates to this website!
Did you get a set of earphones with your MRI? Mine were mostly useless as I had trouble hearing any music. I’d start singing along (to myself — the MRI was loud but I wasn’t sure my off-key crooning wouldn’t carry) when I caught a bit of a song just to see if I’d kept pace when I was able to hear the next little bit.
I was surprised at how long they took as well. I, honestly, thought it would be 5 minutes or less … just like I’d seen on TV. Thirty-five minutes caught me off guard.
Ha! The many and varied ways we find to amuse ourselves (your music “game”)…
They offered to play my Ipod through the sound system, but I opted for some brain organization time.
As soon as the tech reminded me not to move, however, I just knew that my ankle would twitch or something and I’d have to do the whole thing all over again! My forty-five minutes was spent willing my body not to itch…