As I’m sitting here looking at the snow flying out my front window, I can’t help but think that just a week ago, we had painters here making the outside of our home look like new. And just two days ago, my husband and I were hiking in beautiful Riverbend Park along the banks of the Potomac River. I know, usually we are bicycling somewhere. We are planning a trip later this year to the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, and Zion National Park. This will entail a lot of hiking, so we will be gearing up for that.

Sunday morning was sunny and brisk, good weather for hiking (not so much if we were biking.) We set out on a 4.6 mile hike around Riverbend. A good place to go, because although there are some hills, they aren’t mountains. And since we were walking, I could actually enjoy looking around and snapping a few pictures. Here’s what I saw!

 

This big tree had come down recently, and the park rangers had begun the process of sawing it up. But it made me think as I looked around and saw other trees laying on the ground that this was Mother Nature’s way of cleaning house. Who needs a bulldozer when you have a big gust of wind that comes along and does the same thing.

As we walked along we saw this lovely little pond along the trail. I’m guessing the dock is for standing or fishing, and not swimming.

The trail brought us down to the banks of the Potomac River, Virginia side. I don’t know about you, but listening to the sounds of the water is always calming to me.

 

As we were getting ready to head back up the hill from the river, we came across this beautiful rock formation. It made me think about how old this land was, and just how our time here to enjoy it was limited.

 

 

We continued on our trek, going up and down the hills and really getting our heartrates up. Hiking, not just going for a walk, is really good cardio and I was definitely feeling the burn. We came across this hollowed out tree, and I thought it was really beautiful. I imagined an animal of some kind turning this into their winter home.

 

By now our hike had brought us again down along the Potomac. We came upon this group of ducks in the river, and wondered if they knew of the impending snow storm.

 

 

The just past this group, we saw this group standing on the rocks and thought they had the right idea-get out of the cold water!

 

 

The peace and tranquility of a brisk Sunday morning broken occasionally by the sounds of the birds and the wind rustling the leaves. These are the sights and sounds of God at work on a Sunday morning. Even though it was chilly, I could have stayed there all day. Enjoy the work of God everyday.