the beauty of relaxation and contrasts, or, camping, gardening and urban life

I spent labor day camping at Afton State Park. This summer was the first time I discovered this wonderful state park that is only about 45 minutes away from my apartment home in Minneapolis. It's a beautiful place to go camping, the campsites are quite private and wooded, allowing you to pretend you're really out in the woods all alone, and it's a great environment to play Little House on the Prairie in. It also has miles of great hiking, not to mention the steep, uphill one-mile hike just to get to your campsite. The last time I went there I spent hours hiking and exploring and was completely exhausted at the end of the day. This time I spent the whole day sitting, stretching or lying in the sun, it was utterly relaxing. However, I was struggling with the feeling that I should be more productive. On holiday. This is a ridiculous notion! So, I let it go, and had a wonderful, lazy, sun-filled day!
This morning, back in my cozy, urban apartment on the edge of downtown Minneapolis, I planted spinach in my indoor garden. I've never been a gardener, and I'm enjoying this small foray into growing my own food. It makes me very happy to have a small piece of nature in my apartment, it's a little reminder of the great big world that exists outside of the city.