Healing woods or healing waters

Many times I come to this sweet little stretch of Flat Creek, just inside the gateway to Montreat.  I can't do much hiking these days, so it's nice to park right near the road and walk immediately into the woods and see running clear water.

I wasn't sure how much longer this bridge would be standing!  I didn't hold onto railings for any measure of support.

The bare roots that had tripped me as I stepped off the bridge a year ago are now covered by nice gravel.

The drainage pipe is almost invisible though it's in the center of the view below. Just above on the other side of the creek is a memory garden with various markers and cremated remains in a stone wall. It is a quiet meditation place with stone seats for remembering lost loved ones.  It's invisible from this side of Flat Creek.

Yes, there are fairies who visited me...in the forms of bright pale blue butterflies.

Where the moss grows

The rocks in the woods of North Carolina support the green life which also grows throughout the winter in Connecticut.  The same oak leaves cover the ground, though they may be 500 miles apart.  Only in NC however, will the Rhododendrons capture the sunlight as well.

Through the woods

This post got eaten by my internet program, Firefox, earlier today.  I couldn't do a thing with it, even open it.  So here I am trying to start over again.  There are often these little surprises when we least expect them. 

The last of the leaves were falling last week...so I know the colors are gone here now. 

Quote for today:

In the time of your life, live — so that in that wondrous time you shall not add to the misery and sorrow of the world, but shall smile to the infinite delight and mystery of it.

William Saroyan
The Time of Your Life

The woods beckon

A trail marker at the beginning of one of our popular trails in Montreat, NC

Looking through the leaves down to the stream

Or looking through the leaves to sky above!

A thought for today:

Compassion is not religious business, it is human business, it is not luxury, it is essential for our own peace and mental stability, it is essential for human survival.

H.H. Dalai Lama