The importance of taking a break (and documenting it)
Jeff, Alex, and I all went on a RZR riding adventure this past weekend in Marysvale, Utah. I have lived in Utah most of my life and I had never heard or Marysvale or been anywhere around the area. It was so cool to find new and beautiful places right in my own state. We rode on the Paiute Trail, visited Fremont Indian State Park, saw old mining settlements, and the most beautiful scenery. We had picnic lunches on the trails and went on small hikes. We listened to a lot of music and talked to each other over our intercom system headphones. We also enjoyed the company of 3 other couples who we have been friends with for a long time. It was a lot of fun!
We put together several playlists on spotify and downloaded them songs so we could listen to them offline. Yes, we were offline completely for most of the trip. There is something really nice about that once in awhile.
I especially enjoyed being able to take pictures of all the gorgeous fall colors that are starting to pop up. Utah certainly is not a perfect place, but it’s pretty hard to beat the amazing landscapes we have here. Whenever I spend time out in nature, I remember why I love living here!
Barney Lake
I used my iPhone Pro 12 for all of the photography on this trip. It was important to have something that would fit in a pocket or my outdoor purse while I was hiking. Jeff bought a GoPro camera a few years ago and we mounted that to the front of the RZR and had fun playing around with it.
I always offered to take photos of the other couples on the trip and I wasn’t shy about asking others to take our pictures as well.
I handed the camera off to Jeff sometimes because he takes great pictures. It’s also nice to have someone else’s “eye” capture the experience.
One of the best parts about being totally immersed in an adventure is that your mind needs to focus on the moment instead of spending time worrying about everything else in your life. It’s really quite refreshing and I highly recommend everyone find something to enjoy at least occasionally that fills their thoughts so much that there is no room left for the other stuff. We were focused on what was ahead of us on the trail. Where would our next stop be? What song was our favorite on the playlist? When were we going to have lunch. Nothing too major.
And then there were times when Alex fell asleep in the back (amazing that he can sleep on a bumpy road!) and Jeff and I talked about everything. The worries, the future, work, life, health, etc. That was good too because we had no interruptions. Just us, nature, and our own little world to think about.
I made it a point to jot down names of our stops in the notes section of my phone. Most often, I just took photos of the signs to use for documenting and journaling. I noticed at the beginning of the trip, I didn’t realize how dusty my iPhone lens was getting (see first photo in this post), but I later was more vigilant about wiping it off with the inside of my t-shirt or jacket before taking photos and that made a big difference.
Usually when we are on vacation, I try to upload photos each evening to our private family instagram and include my thoughts and details. We were pretty tired in the evening on this trip and we didn’t have wifi so that was a little trickier. I still managed a few posts and then I’ve worked on the rest of them since we’ve been home. It’s a fun way to share with my family and I can just copy and paste the journaling when I’m ready to create layouts.
I know it’s hard to get away for adventures sometimes (especially in these crazy times) but I highly recommend finding an activity that takes you away from the mental strain of everyday life now and then. Even if it’s just a walk or a short drive, it’s still time away. Take some photos and enjoy the scenery. You deserve a break!
