Intertwined
Intertwined
Claire Biegalski
I sit, surrounded by chamomile, watching the wind sweep through the valley and over the ridge. The tall prairie grass ripples like a never-ending sea of light green which tickles my bare arms as is bows with the breeze. A stream just beyond the meadow carves its way through the bluffs; for miles it crosses properties, waters cows, and is home to hundreds of baby minnows ready for the nearing summer currents.
Every weekend, my family and I drive up to our farm to work hard and escape from the predictable life of suburbia. I spend most of my time outside observing nature and walking that stream.
In the spot where I sit I can hear it bubbling, swelling with energy and life. So I get up and begin to follow the water. At first it is easy, I walk a freshly-cut path beside it watching the rush empty into a teal, slow-moving pool harboring vast quantities of life. Frogs splash in as I continue on, gazing at the natural beauty of the winding stream. The path comes to an end and I step in -- I step into that beautiful water that always seems to sparkle. The beauty and tranquility is almost deceptive, under the surface, the water gives way to algae-covered rocks and mud that sucks my boots in and holds them like quicksand making it hard to continue on. I come across forks and dead ends having to turn back only to find the water running dry. Tree roots, pools that are too deep, mud too thick, water too little, and currents too strong. After a long trek, I make it to the barbed wire that separates me from the rest of that little stream, but on I look, and as far as I can see it carries on.
I realize that much like this little stream life has its fits and starts, its beauty and dead ends. It comes with making difficult choices and not always finding the results I hope for. I will have to encounter the parts of life that drag me down in a slump, the muddied water that makes it hard to see where to take my next steps. There will be facing and overcoming adversity, certainly moments of happiness and success, all the bad intertwined with the good and the ugly with the beautiful. But what captivates me the most is never knowing what comes next, never knowing where I will end up or what obstacles will be encountered along the way.