A Welcome Friend

I woke up this morning, not to sounds of traffic and high heel shoes on concrete, but to birds singing and other little creatures forewarning me of a coming rainstorm. I looked out my window and didn't see other apartment buildings with a tree here and there, but instead I saw the Smoky Mountains in the distance and countless trees swaying in the gentle breeze. And now I sit in the kitchen of my good friends wondering to myself, why would I not just stay here?

It's not about escaping where I live and all the pressure and frustrations of that place. It's about feeling a peacefulness here that I have never felt where I now live. And certainly there are beauties to be seen there, but its places like this that act as a salve to my soul and beckon me to stay. This is how I am designed.

And even though this is just a momentary escape from the chaotic pace of my new life, it is a welcome friend.