I have returned home after a two-day trip to the beautiful region known as Sedona, AZ. It’s nice taking trips without planning every hour of every day. In fact, I did not have anything planned on purpose. The main goal was to be away from home to unplug from routine. The secondary goal was to enjoy nature and practicing being present. Other than masks required in all public areas, things were business as usual.

Yesterday’s highlight was a two-hour jeep tour through the hills courtesy of someone named “Colorado Dave.” There were some rough parts of the terrain in which we were jostled around quite forcefully, and anyone pending or having just completed back surgery would not be advised to attempt such a tour. The main attraction was a log cabin that was built roughly 100 years ago in the desert wilderness. It is hard to imagine a much simpler time when people essentially lived off the land. 

It is interesting to be out in the wilderness and hear true silence. I became very aware of noise pollution and also aware of how much noise is around us all the time. This experience made me want to figure out ways to create silence around me.