Life Under the "D"

Mid Winter.
The sunshine is deceiving.
It is still under 15 degrees, and may stay that way for at least another month.

As I sit at my computer, enjoying the warmth of the wood stove and the sun shining through my window, I look up and see the "D". 

The constant that never changes, and sometimes you can even make it out through the frozen snow. But not today.

Once again we are in the grip of cold winter weather, dreaming about summer.

The days in our little town are filled with busyness. In actuality, everyone looking busy is freezing their rears off and in a hurry to get inside and warm up. But hey, it looks like we are a town full of purposeful busyness.
And, some people actually are.

I should be. 
I need to go check the cabin and make sure it is ready for our next group of guests. But I'm not.
I should be re-checking my seed order and getting ready to plan the garden plot. But I'm not.
I should be finishing the laundry. But I'm not.

Instead, I am sitting here with the warmth of a fire and sunshine streaming through my windows staring at "D" mountain.

Briefly, very briefly, I think about making plans to climb it again this coming summer. I remember well the hike up the the hill, constantly looking for rattle snakes, sweating under the hot sun, then finally sitting under the white painted rocks that form the "D" we all love. But, sanity returns, and I ignore the urges to take that hike while it is still cool. I'm not completely crazy! (I do remember watching as my children made the climb, while I watched happily below!)

I think it is a right of passage to climb the mountain for people who live here. New comers to town always do it in their first few weeks, and vow, never again. Many sit at the bottom, and stare, shaking their heads when we they spot someone trying the hike. 

As kids, we rode our horses up there. Pretending we were looking over our personal and private kingdom. From there, we were sure we were seeing the whole world. We were able to see all over the valley, which was our whole world. We would pick out landmarks. The screen at the drive-in outside of Monte Vista, the rocks of La Garita, the sand dunes, and even Alamosa. 

From there we could see the cars that looked like ants, and the farms that dot the valley floor. We could sing, like we often did, and think everyone below had to be listening to our sweet voices. (okay, maybe not sweet, but we could sing, and we believed everyone in our world loved listening to us.)

Today, I just want to be lazy. I don't want to rush around outside in the cold. I don't want to fold clothes. I don't want to do any summer planning. Today, I just want to sit here in the warmth and enjoy living life under the "D."