Saturday Morning

The weekend comes and goes so quickly.  I feel like I've been swamped with grading lately.  The thing they don't tell you about teaching is how you feel you could always do MORE; that what you do never feels like enough. Well, I'm totally there.  

In addition to feeling like I'm not measuring up or giving my students what they need, it's been hard to find the time to exercise.  When I come home in the evening, I don't have the energy to run.  I make dinner and then want to relax.  I've tried to workout in the mornings, but my body doesn't seem to cooperate.  I'm not in the kind of shape I used to be in and I don't feel as adventurous as I used to be either.  Don't get me wrong, I'm still active.  I'm more active than most probably, but when you compare yourself to "what you used to be" or "used to feel like" it's a different story.  We've all been there.  

Anyway, Mike told me at 4:45 Saturday morning that he was going surfing on North Shore with our friend Mitchell.  So instead of being a bum and sleeping while he was out doing something active, I decided to go on my own dawn patrol--but on the south shore.  I went to White Plains, the beach closest to us with mini waves :)  I ran into an old friend and got to catch up on family stuff with him.  It was a good morning.  

When I got out of the water, around 7:30, I felt inspired to go trail running!  I'm not sure why, but I missed being in the woods and feeling close with nature.  I guess when I lived at the camp, I took that for granted.  

I brought my board back to the house, changed my clothes, and headed out to run the Aiea Loop Trail.  My goal was to jog the whole thing, but I had to walk the last half mile I think.  My legs were DONE.  Plus, I stopped a lot to take these pictures.     

the start of the trail

natural sunlight shining through the trees

some beautiful ferns along the way

A bench that I didn't stop to rest on :)

The lookout

I thought this was a cool shot of the trees in the forest

The mysterious path...

I liked this cool tree too!

Some more natural light

 A nice shot of Pearl City and the water behind

I love this lookout; you can see H-3 through the trees

Mountains, a valley, and beyond...

I thought this tree was neat too :)

Just beautiful!  This fallen tree is shaped so intricately

This reminds me of Robert Frost's poem:  The Road Not Taken

Looking down at H-3

Another bright and vibrant shot

Overall, it was a great Saturday morning!  I came home, showered, and took a nap.  Then we spent the afternoon and evening with some friends in Waikele.  God is good!