my favorite place on earth

heads up: personal info to follow

One of the assignments I like to give my students is to write about their favorite places. It's a good way for me to assess their use of adjectives and descriptive words, as well as writing in the past. Plus it's a way for me to get to know them a little bit more personally. Usually they ask me what my favorite place is too, and it's probably one of the easiest questions to answer. My favorite place on earth is unlike anywhere I've ever been, and it's also full of memories.

mystic lake, montana

Mystic Lake is a place that I spent a lot of time at growing up. To get there you drive about 2 hours southwest of Billings and then hike 3 miles up to the lake (well, it's actually a man-made reservoir but it's still beautiful). Like I said, I spent a lot of time there when I was younger. It's a hike that my dad and I did many times each summer, and I have so many vivid memories of the hike and spending the day fishing and eating turkey sandwiches.

cerca 1995

Unfortunately I hit that awful age where kids are too cool for their parents, and my last hike to Mystic with my dad must have been when I was 13 or so. Last September I was back in Montana for some family stuff, and I decided to do the hike again. It had been 8 years since my dad passed away, and even more since I'd done the hike, and so many feelings and memories came back to me. The best part of the hike is when you finally make it up the last set of switchbacks and you are rewarded with the most breath-taking view of the entire valley and the lake. I think my heart literally stopped, and all I could do was look and take it all in. The power of memory is such an amazing thing. I think it's incredible that you can seeing something as simple as a tree or a sign and feel like you've time-traveled. I felt closer to my dad that day than I had since he passed away, and it's a hike that I hope to make many more times in my life. I want to share it with my kids, and I'm so thankful that my dad shared it with me when I was younger. 

Happy Monday everyone!