Autumn Breeze

Autumn Breeze
            We discovered a feral cat living in our backyard several years ago. She now lives a comfortable domesticated life a block away in the house of a neighbor who kindly took her in when we worried about her being in cold, wet weather. Everyone at my house has allergies, and we couldn’t keep her. I visit her at her indoor home every week.
            In her outdoor days in our yard, I admired her survival skills. She easily jumped onto the high fences that carried her between yards, running off to wherever the hunting for birds and rodents seemed promising. She was small but tough.
            A few years older now, she enjoys long naps indoors, and probably would not survive so easily on her own. She does, however, love to spend time in her current backyard. 
            Today I spent my usual hour with her and her “indoor cat mom,” sitting outside in their yard. Her sense of enjoyment at simply being in the fresh air was tangible. I sat watching her soak up the sun, the autumn breeze blowing across her whiskers, her ears perked in constant alert mode. She looked sublimely content.
            I felt a deep satisfaction watching autumn light cast shadows that flickered as the breeze moved the surrounding leaves. I could viscerally sense the cat’s pleasure, and similarly enjoyed the feeling of the autumn sun and breeze on my skin.
            If we could put that feeling of simple pleasure at being outdoors, sensing the warmth of the sun, the feel of a light breeze, the sound of birds, and the golden hue that comes with autumn afternoon light into pill form, fewer people might need prescriptions for anxiety and depression.
            Is there something in your life that brings calm contentment? A place, a season, a person? Tap into that goodness when you can, and keep putting one foot forward!
            This week’s Hike Notes from the archives, Pioneer Tree Trail, takes readers on a woodsy walk through old growth redwoods in Samuel P. Taylor State Park, a perfect place for soaking up golden autumn light that filters down through the trees.
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This week’s hike from the archives:
Hike Notes 91: Pioneer Tree Trail