I wasn't sure I should stop.
Exhausted from two days of busier-than-normal activity and a full morning that included an early appointment with the dermatologist and shopping at both Target and the grocery store {experiences that leave me feeling like I'm walking on rocks}, I was anxious to get home, unload the groceries and rest my feet.
I'd tried to stop one day last week, but when I turned off the highway, a sign on the locked gate declared the park closed. Maybe the sign was still there, and with groceries in the car that needed refrigeration, I really didn't have time to dawdle anyway.
But the gate was open and I couldn't resist. For just five minutes, I could breathe in the fresh air and wonder at the spring that's coming to life in this quiet, isolated park of palmetto-oak scrubs under a canopy of long-needle pines.
And for just five minutes, it didn't even feel like walking on rocks.
