June 7, 2024

Atmosphere

Last night, I got to bed on time and this morning; I woke up feeling refreshed. While washing up and brushing my teeth, I remembered an alert on my watch that my sleeping hours had decreased over the past week. This explained the way I had felt lately. I made a goal to get back on track with my sleep. While I understood how to work hard, it often felt dissonant to give myself time to rest. Recovery, however, was the key to maintaining high performance. Sleep was a skill, and I vowed to take it more seriously.

Last night, it rained hard. The precipitation levels were another reminder we were no longer in Texas. Here, the large reservoirs and lakes were a constant sign that water was abundant. Even the creek on our property flowed freely.

Before coffee time, I took the dogs outside. Although it was before sunrise, the sky was already lighting. It surprised me to see bats out hunting. It was the first time I saw them in the morning, as they were usually out at dusk. I supposed it all looked the same to them.

The morning was full of our customary routines. We drank coffee and talked about our plans. After, I fed the dogs, and did my morning chores while my wife got ready for work. After she left, I wrote and then headed out into the forest.

The trails were muddy from the rain, but the morning was sunny. On this clear and cloudless day, the sky was a vast expanse of baby blue. The trees, still soaked, glistened wherever the sun poked through the woods. There were sparkling limbs, leaves, and spider webs all around. 

When I passed from the grove to the woodland, the woods went dark. The canopy in this area was more dense and blocked out the sun’s light with ease. An occasional breeze would blow above the forest, causing the branches to shake, dropping water droplets that sounded like brief bouts of rain. There were new mushrooms growing everywhere.

While walking north on the central trail, I came across a large box turtle. This was the seventh turtle, and fourth box turtle I saw this year. In the previous two years, I had only seen one crossing our dirt road. The environment must have been rich for feeding and reproduction. The soundscape at the creek included a few birds, but the chirps of cicadas dominated it.

I was happy to see the creek full and flowing. The old ripples and gurgles of the water were back, and I stopped to listen to them. I always found these sounds calming. The strange buzzing noises I heard a week or two ago were back. I still couldn’t see what was making them. I suspected it was some type of frog.

Even though the humidity was high, I enjoyed this morning’s walk. Last night’s rain coupled with the morning’s strong sunshine created atmospheric conditions that made the forest look enchanting. The air was thick, almost visible in a haze. Through the openings in the forest’s ceiling, sunbeams cut through the woods, creating visible beams of dispersed light. It was a woodland photographer’s preferred condition for shooting pictures of nature.

The workday began with a couple of meetings, but there were serious Friday vibes, and everyone seemed ready for the weekend. At lunch, I used some of the leftover smoked ribeye to fashion street tacos made of beef, avocado, cheese, ranch, sriracha, and tomatoes in corn tortillas. I sent a picture to my wife to make her jealous and let her know I was eating.

While I worked away in the afternoon, my wife called, letting me know she was getting off work early and that she was getting ready to drive home. Excited, I kept myself focused and tried to get as many things done before the weekend started. In my experience, you could either slack off on Fridays and pay for it on Mondays, or you could finish the week strong and have an easy return to work. I much preferred the latter.

I was happy to see my wife when she arrived. Once I finished work, we drove her car into Rock Ridge, filling it up with gas. As I drove into Wilson, she called Pino’s Pizza and place an order for pickup. It was pizza night.

Although it was still warm outside, we ate out on the deck, holding a slice of pizza in one hand while shooing gnats and flies with the other. The insects were a little bothersome, but the weather was just too pretty to be indoors. After we finished eating, my wife and I took a walk into the forest.

When we entered the western trailhead at the grove, we saw the cottontail that recently moved into the area. When the rabbit saw us, it shot east, running at full speed, first through the woods, and then on our trail. I thought it was funny the rabbit used the pathway, even when it curved around the bend, technically a farther distance than going straight through the woods.

The weather was more hot than warm, and there were pesky gnats swarming around my face while a biting fly dove repeatedly, thumping against my hat. We listened carefully for deer, but heard none, as we made our way to Beaver Tooth Rock. There we climbed onto the large boulder, ducking our head to avoid a branch that had grown over the trail. Once we were on top, we took a rest, squatting down, looking for wildlife, and catching our breath. My wife carefully gathered all the teeth on the rock, placing them back into a neat pile.

The creek, still swollen from the recent rain, was moving fast enough to hear it rushing. It was the only thing moving fast in the forest. When we neared the bank, small ripples would always emerge on the water’s surface. My wife kneeled down by the murky water to see what was making the movements. At first she saw nothing, but later reported they were tiny fish. They were nearly invisible when facing her head on, and she only saw them when they turned, showing their minuscule, transparent bodies.

The walk back through the humidity made us tired and out of breath. My wife had beads of sweat on her forehead while my face and body dripped. When we returned to the house, we sat on the hammock together in the shade. The sun was on the western horizon and the sky was transforming into a bright display of pinks and oranges. Even though the sky directly above us had turned dark, we saw a commercial airliner brightly lit by the setting sun, glowing like a spaceship reentering the earth’s atmosphere. The weekend was here, and we felt grateful.