Journal: 1/11/06

Yesterday I came home from school early to take Matt’s car to the shop, and it gave me an opportunity to enjoy a late afternoon in winter outdoors, instead of inside my classroom. I drove the car to the shop, and then walked back the few blocks to my apartment. It was a chilly afternoon, but I had my heavy sport jacket on and I tucked my wool scarf close around my neck, so I was comfortable as I strolled along. I got a glimpse of the golden sun low down among the trees in the park, so I decided to change clothes and do my daily exercise walking in the park while the sun was setting. It was a good decision. I climbed the steps by the pond eight times, and I was enthralled, as I climbed, by the lovely look of the park on this winter day. I wished I had brought my camera, because the sights were something to behold. The pond, with its silveriness and its shining reflection of the sunlight, was especially beautiful. The surface, as I saw it from the hillside, seemed completely motionless, which created a perfect mirror effect. It looked like a huge piece of miraculous glass someone had set down in the park centuries ago. I glanced over at it many times as I trudged up and down the steps. I walked back home breathing heavily, but happy that my walking had brought me the satisfaction of seeing the park dressed up for a winter afternoon.