Thin places...

Almost a year and a half ago, I sat around a large table with Steve's siblings and spouses in celebration of his father's 70th birthday. The conversations were fun and light hearted and the mood of the evening was nostalgic. One particular conversation that Steve's brother Bob started was based on an article he had recently read on thin places. The idea really resonated with me then and continues to occupy my thoughts at times. The term Bob referenced, thin places, came from a NY Times Travel section article titled, "“Thin Places: Where We are Jolted Out of Old Ways of Seeing the World.”

The writer of the article is clearly a world traveler and has seen so much of this beautiful world. He says, "I’m drawn to places that beguile and inspire, sedate and stir, places where, for a few blissful moments I loosen my death grip on life, and can breathe again...They are locales where the distance between heaven and earth collapses and we’re able to catch glimpses of the divine, or the transcendent or, as I like to think of it, the Infinite Whatever."

At first, I had a hard time thinking of my thin places. I've done very little traveling and wasn't quite sure out of the places I have seen what would constitute as thin. But as I started searching my mind for those quiet blissful moments in life, my thin places started to take shape and they were as simple as could be. They're not grand or unique but they stir feelings within me and allow me to breathe just a little deeper. I love recognizing these moments when they happen and for just a second in time I soak it in.

Here are just a few:
Walking from the kitchen to the office, after the kids are in the bed, and the house is peaceful and has order.

Driving through southern Utah (Kanab to Panguitch specifically) as the sun starts to set behind the mountains.

After spending time in the temple, the walk back to my car.

Sitting in a room with the lights off and the Christmas tree lights on.

Walking, driving, riding a bike passed a field with pipe sprinklers running.

They are but simple moments in time, but they are "blissful moments that allow me to loosen my death grip on life and to breathe again."