Five Minute Friday: STAY

Today I'm linking up with the Five Minute Friday community, writing for five minutes on a given prompt. This week's word is STAY.

Since the pandemic shutdown began in mid-March, we have been taking many walks on the K&P Trail. Yesterday we went to one of our favourite sections; it starts at the edge of a hilly country road and circles around to another spot further along the same road.

It was hot, and Jonathan wanted to turn back early, so Richard went back with him while I went on, walking out of the midday sunshine and into this shady, gently climbing section of the trail. On my right, the hill rose, thick with tall maples, ferns tumbling down among fallen limbs. On my left, the ground fell steeply away, more maples and ferns spreading down the hill toward a farmer's field. The sun dropped crumbling through the leaves, laying a dappled path before my feet, and the breeze ruffled the treetops. It was so beautiful, so serene, so inviting.

For a moment I wished I could stay there forever, far from distressing global events and the tedium of the day-to-day. Of course I couldn't. But I wondered if it might be possible to bring that place -- its peace and beauty and serenity -- along with me wherever I went. Can a place stay in our heart, the way those we love do even when they're absent from us?

I hope so. In the meantime, I'll go to the trail again some day to soak in that tranquility and remind myself of all the beauty there is in this world.