Jackie Stallworth - Natural Setting #2

 Over Thanksgiving break, during a slightly warmer day, my family went to Great Falls, which is a national park in Northern Virginia about 20 minutes from my house. We took our dog, Archie, who is an adventurous puppy that doesn’t realize how big he is. Of course, it was still chilly, so not many people were there as opposed to when we went in the summer and it was packed. Archie dragged my mom by his leash to the rock overlooking the water. He climbed up on his hind legs and rested his front paws on the rocks, much like a human would do. Honestly, I think he was having a more spiritual experience than any of us because he looked so peaceful. He took a bunch of deep breaths and started out at the water, and I could tell he absolutely loved it. My favorite seasons are fall and winter because I love taking huge breaths of the freezing cold air, it’s refreshing and it’s kind of like a detox for my lungs. We got away from the water because 1) it was cold and 2) Archie was got so excited and we were scared he was going to fall and hurt himself and/or someone else. We walked on one of the trails for about half an hour. My dad started whistling at some point and it created a really cool sound with the wind blowing and the distant sound of the water, and our shoes clomping on the ground. While I didn’t necessarily feel anything spiritual, it was nice to be around my family without having to be on our phones or preoccupied with school and work at a beautiful park.

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