Sunset over the San Francisco Bay Spring Break 2012
--Recently I had the chance to spend a week in Oakland, CA with my daughters and nieces while my sister-in-law and her hubby went on a bike adventure/rejuvenation trip around the Bay Area. While they were gone all of us girls spent the week shopping, cooking, doing pinterest projects, painting our nails, watching chic flicks, reading, resting, and taking care of the basic duties of daily life. We met up with friends from home (yep they live in our neighborhood...but we just had to meet them for lunch in Pleasanton) and spent some time out at the Ranch. Ra and I even took it upon ourselves to saddle up the horses, Houdini and Reveler, and go for a ride up to the power tower and take in the views. Seems like I'm always trying to take in the views.....
But maybe I'm overly crazed about great views...I love the view of the mountains from my bedroom windows, the exercise room, the living room and every east facing room in my house. I love the sunset views from my kitchen window, and from my bedroom deck. I love the lights of the Salt Lake valley and across to the Oquirrh mountains from my bedroom window and decks. I love the views in Corner Canyon and up the Temple Quarry trail where I mountain bike. I love watching the sunset from Bell Canyon Reservoir. I love looking at the trees as they change along Wasatch Blvd and up the canyons. I love looking at the "mighty Joe Young" rock as I eat dinner on the deck in the summer. I love the scenery of Millcreek Canyon and the open views of riding up Emmigration canyon. I love the view of the Tetons from my Dad's house and the view of the Bay from the Johnson's...seems I'm always looking at the beauty around me and I can never get enough.
I realized I might be a little overboard about walking places and just standing there and drinking in the beauty when I was tucking my sweet mom-in-law into bed and commented about the amazing view she had out her bedroom window. She mentioned that she'd just discovered how amazing her view was when they chopped a few trees down and took off the window blinds that never seemed to get opened when she was hurrying off to work everyday. Now the blinds are always up and the gentle light from Oakland and San Francisco makes a beautiful night glow over the room.
I couldn't fathom living in a room for years and never opening the blinds to enjoy the view. I'm a curtain and blind opener....and rarely do I close them unless the street, neighborhood lights. or the full moon are keeping me awake at night. I make my sister-in-law crazy because I don't pull all my blinds down at night...and all my windows don't lock. In fact, I took all the window coverings off my living room windows so that every time I walk through I see the mountains (and wish I was outside, not inside cleaning) True, the furniture will be faded prematurely and people can peep in on us at night...but hopefully they'll just see a family eating dinner around the dining room table (on occasional Sundays) enjoying music around the piano, or just hanging out together.
I know open windows may violate your sense of privacy...but I don't have much to hide (that I know of) so I relish the open blinds and lack of window coverings....I want to see all there is to see and I only want the view covered if the west sun is beating in and heating the house to unbearable levels during the summer afternoons. Even then, as soon as the sun drops below the trees, I'm the first one to re-open the blinds and see if the evening is providing a pink sunset. Am I afraid of missing out on something? Claustrophobic? Extremely Extroverted? I prefer to think of myself as just trying to enjoy the changing beauty of everyday...I can't stand the thought of missing out on what is blooming in my backyard, or watching my son triumph over the storm troopers with his green golf club, or watching my kids jump on the trampoline, mix concoctions or play pretend on the deck....It's all part of that urge to find the joy in the little things and to live every moment to the fullest....Have I always been this obsessed with living the present or is that a gift of maturing, or surviving cancer?
No matter the reason I'm grateful for the joy a view brings me--in Utah, in CA, in Idaho, wherever I get a chance to be, I seem to be drinking in the view and hoping that the joy of those moments will carry me through one more day with all its challenges. Thank goodness for the views!
