This morning I took a nice long walk around the Meadows. They have changed a lot since the first day we arrived. For one thing, the wildflowers are changing! Yes - gone are the purples and blues. In their place is an abundance of yellow and red. Some of the grasses that were bright green the first day we walked are turning golden. In a couple of weeks, I wonder if there will be any flowers at all?
It is warm already this morning, unlike the earlier part of the week where it was chilly until almost noon. And the humidity is back. Not quite as bad as yesterday afternoon when it suddenly began to cloud up. Then about an hour before sundown we heard a clap of thunder and then the pitter patter of raindrops. The thunderstorm lasted a scant 10 minutes but reoccurred several times over the course of the evening.
The air has that freshly scrubbed smell to it. Heavenly, I must say. This whole place is like a slice of Heaven. Yes, there is a lot of traffic outside of the Meadows. Yes, there are globs of tourists everywhere - outside of the Meadows. But inside these gates there is a serenity and splendor that those on the outside can only imagine. Where else can a little pug go for walks filled with fragrant flowers, tinged with the warmth of sunlight and kissed by the fresh mountain breeze?
Tomorrow we head back to the Bay Area and it's myriad social impositions. But I think we will all retain a little of the mountains in our souls - at least for a while.
