Scenic Route

God blessed me with a beautiful sunrise on my morning run today.

I almost missed it. It was still a bit dark out when I was heading west and then south. But when I turned around to head back north I glanced to my right and saw the beautiful pinks and oranges behind the black silhouettes of the trees.

As usual, I thought: "I wish I had my camera!" But some things are just meant to be enjoyed for the moment -- and we can take a picture in our mind. As quickly as it appeared, it was gone and the sun was up to brighten the day. By the time I got back to the house, the opportunity to share it had disappeared with the colorful hues.

Maybe it was just meant for me. Sometimes I need reminders of the beauty around me. I am guilty of having tunnel vision. Whether it's running or biking or driving, I know where I need to go and how to get there. My focus is often tunneled in on just getting there.

Last week a friend in the publishing business stopped by our Iola office on a visit from Arkansas. He was meeting family in the lakes area south of Wisconsin Rapids so I gave him directions how to get there since 90 percent of the trip is my route to and from work each day.

When he arrived at his destination, he called me to thank me for the great directions and commented, "That was the most beautiful drive I've had in Wisconsin. How did you pick such scenic route?"

Scenic route? Frankly, we drive that way because it is the shortest distance between points A and B. I hadn't considered it a "scenic route" ... or maybe just hadn't noticed.

On my way home that day, I took special note of it. He was right. There is a beautiful variety of scenery. Why didn't I see that before?

Makes me wonder what else I'm missing ...