Beginning of the End

It seems inconceivable that I would ever get here but tomorrow is the day I begin to head back home with Traveling 23 in tow. A lot has happened in the past couple of days, my best friend flew in Wednesday night and I have embarked on a mission to show her all the "must sees". I messed up the time she was supposed to come and she was left waiting at the airport for 30 minutes. All was well, we went downtown to Prince's Island for dinner and then headed out to Okotoks for the night. We drove through a wicked wind/rain storm only to find many downed branches in the campground. I was quite worried 23 was going to be damaged but she survived without a scratch. After a sound sleep, we awoke to no power which meant no shower. Not to be deterred, we set out to Moraine Lake and Lake Louise. The weather quickly deteriorated. As we drove the temperature dropped to 42, the rain poured down, and the wind howled. We persevered to Moraine Lake. The light for photographing detail was fabulous as the heavy cloud cover acted as a softbox. I realized that my attention had only been on the beauty of the lake and mountains last week. I had missed the beauty of the tree roots as they twisted in random patterns around the base of the pine trees. The tops of the exposed roots were worn into a smooth softness.  I loved the texture and colors of the driftwood as it bobbed in the water. I made me realize how similar it's life is to ours. It starts out as a little sapling, soft and tender, bending and taking shape as it grows. It develops heavy bark as it reaches maturity but also has scars from mishaps and surviving during difficult times, times of drought and times of flood. As time goes on it becomes weaker succumbing to life, it falls over cushioned by the lake which carries it softly on a new journey. Slowly the lake removes the crustiness of the bark, smooths what is left into a beautiful patina before it disappears forever. I hope I develop a beautiful patina as I age and don't stop short with a rough bark exterior.

After a strenuous hike around Lake Louise, we were very happy to sit down and enjoy lunch and a glass of wine. Chilly but content, achy but happy, we enjoyed the natural views and the people views as well. 

We very drowsily drove back to Banff where we wandered around much to Louise's dismay (as in Thelma and  Louise). We strolled, actually hobbled around Cascade Gardens before enjoying a bowl of soup and crawling into bed. A lovely day, albeit the weather didn't cooperate in the least.