Rather than fixating on my high blood pressure, I decided to have fun this weekend. So my partner and I went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee where we rented a cabin overlooking the Smoky mountains. The knotty pine wood cabin had an incredible view which included a steaming hot tub facing the Smokies. We drove into town and wandered through the national park where my partner decided to go swimming in the frigid clear streams diffusing down the mountain. A mossy green smell filled the air while a smoky mist was rising above the rocks to the canopy of lush trees overhead. There was life everywhere.
The final part of our trip involved a white water rafting ride down the Pigeon river. We were a little nervous never having done this before, but the experience was incredible. We were on a small inflatable raft with three other people and our rafting guide. We held on with a death grip as we traversed the swirling frothy class 3-4 waters. We hit a big rapid and one of the people tumbled in the churning waters but my partner quickly held on to her and pulled her in. The 2 hour ride ended with slow peaceful ride back to our starting point leaving me feeling refreshed and alive.
Sometimes we need to focus outward and away from our internal problems… to see the beauty in nature and all that is life. We drove home shortly after that stopping at a Cracker Barrel(Gasp!)for dinner ( I ate a chicken tender salad with low fat dressing).
