A Meander Through the Trees

I didn’t take the paved path, but I had planned to….

I went to the park the other morning.  Just wanted to get some steps in and went to one of my faves to be by the water.  I didn’t plan to take the long way. I just wanted to walk along the river—familiar, easy, cement underfoot.

But the path was crowded. Too many fishing poles…and I didn’t want a hook in the eye. So I pivoted and stepped up into the grass. And then between the trees. And then… I kept going.

There, I didn’t walk with purpose. I forgot about getting steps. I meandered. No plan. No pace. I stopped. I touched the bark of trees. I noticed how they bent, how light shone through them. I marveled at the height and holes and wondered what all they’ve seen. 

I saw kids playing, parents chatting, people being. I planned on listening to a book or a playlist.  I didn’t. Instead, I just listened – to the chatter, the laughter, the birds, the water and the breeze. I didn’t perform “mindfulness.” I just… was.

And it felt like a kind of remembering. Like I wasn’t finding the path—I was letting it carry me. I was moving with fascination and wonder instead of checking my watch for steps and time. It reminded me that peace doesn’t always come when planned. Sometimes it finds you when you stop trying to do it “right.” I didn’t intend to wander. But I think part of me knew I needed to.

And maybe that’s the point sometimes:
✨ You don’t have to make every moment productive.
✨ You don’t have to earn stillness or wonder.
✨ You don’t have to be moving fast to be going somewhere.

✨You don’t always need a map. Sometimes, you just need to let go, follow the path that shows up and trust it will lead you where you need to go.

Let yourself meander. That’s the magic. Embrace it.