And at the end of the day, all is quiet. The sun has gone to sleep behind the horizon line. The black fluttering silhouettes of wings against the orange sky are all gone and even the last bird has reached home by now.

I let the shimmering beauty of the day settle, like magic dust, over the fresh land of my memories. Today was a day when being alive was the greatest gift of all. No reason needed. Just eyes to see the majesty of creation and a heart to beat along with it.

I want to hold everything I saw and felt. To keep the blue sky held up by white puffy clouds like balloons from a child’s dream, the fields of soft green inundated by sunshine and the trees aflame with autumn hues, leaves floating briefly in the wind, falling at my feet. I saw a little boy ecstatic at the site of apples in an orchard and I was moved to tears by his happiness. I walked through a field of dahlias as chickadees took flight before me and tasted the juice of freshly picked raspberries off my fingertips.

I wanted to burst with joy for finding myself there, in between the rows of raspberries, at the center of the universe.

A steaming hot caramel apple pie later and the uncontained richness of a perfect day, leave no room for description. Only the lingering bliss responsible for my continuous smile. And a heart filled to the brim with gratitude.