A Wonderful Day in Paradise

There's something about a weekend in the great outdoors of beautiful Big Sky Montana spent dirt biking with awesome friends. There's something about it that connects your heart to their's and is bound by nature. The aroma of a campfire lingers on everybody and the gentle breeze ruffles your hair. You all throw helmets on and rev up the engines. Soon you're blasting down the road, eager to find a decently treacherous trail. 80.9 MPH doesn't cut it, but as for safety it's fast enough. There aren't any foot pegs for you on the back, so you hold on tightly and strain your calve muscles. The trees whiz by at the speed of lightning. The sky is a vibrant azure with speckles of white cotton scattered here and there across the horizon. It's almost too much to take in all at once. The Clark Fork River rushes by to your left and a railroad bridge crosses over the span. The biking trail is just up ahead and you gain a stronger grip. The road is fairly smooth, until you create your own path, which is the best part of all. One very steep hill is nearing quickly and you hang on so hard, for fear of slipping backwards. We stop for a break and witness this real-to-life dream. Not a detail is missing. At the top is a breath-taking panoramic view! The sky is the brightest you've ever seen and clear as glass. The tall, vivid green pines in the gorgeous valley and below and that surround you reach beyond the heavens and dewy grass and sparkling yellow and lavender flowers cover the hillside. On the mountains in the distance are snow-capped peaks. For though it is late April and sunny with a high of 75 the beauty of winter still lumes above. Every image is crystal sharp. Everything about the moment is spectacular and perfect! Perfect is the best word, but yet it doesn't even scratch the surface of our amazing thoughts that describe the scenery and our time together. The brilliant rays of sunshine illuminate everything more as time passes. And it seems as if a blink of an eye it's time to head back to base. But before departing you gingerly carve your names into the soft bark of a tree. You take one more mental picture and hop on the back of the bike, gently wrapping your arms around their waist and think of the symbol you just made to remain for eternity of a wonderful day in Paradise.