Green Light

"Green Light" ~ Leesburg, VA (c) 2011 Skip Hunt

Walked for hours around the quiet streets of Leesburg, Virginia. A quiet change from the national mall in DC but the lack of pedestrians felt odd. Being alone didn't bother me in the slightest. It was the sense that you weren't actually alone at all. I don't know the history of Leesburg at all, but I felt slightly bewitched there.

Almost a year ago I wandered these same streets and felt the very same presence.

As I let the breeze dictate my direction, I found myself favoring a path leading toward the outskirts. Eventually I came upon a large park of rolling hills and pine trees. There's a large garden and barn atop the largest of the hills along side an old cemetery.

There was a funeral in progress so I tried to look away and not let thoughts of mortality rule my afternoon walk in the hills. I wandered why I'd choose to ignore the reminder that life is fleeting and stopped to pay my respects from a distance.

I began thinking about how much time I might have left and whether my remains would be buried or scattered. And, whether or not my time was being well spent.

I may not have much material wealth to show for myself, but the fact I was spending my time carelessly strolling a late summer afternoon amid the pine and rolling hills without a care other than whether or not that old barn might make a nice photo... was the only answer I needed.

Skip Hunt
Austin, Texas