Trail in Breckenridge, Colorado. Photo by Ashlie Miller

By Ashlie Miller

While mid-December through March is the peak season for tourists in Breckenridge, Colorado, due to winter sports, my husband and I are not your average tourists there. Give me mild temps in June with fewer people anywhere, and I’ll likely go. The breathtaking landscapes can keep one’s head turning around every bend — craggy cliffs of a mountain on one side, evergreen peaks on the next and white-capped points straight ahead. Those are just sights from the main highways. Walking along trails or riding an e-bike provides more opportunities to pause and take in the grandeur of creation.

While we were away on a pastors’ and wives’ retreat, I had one morning to myself to venture out while my pastor (my husband) was writing the week’s sermon. Selecting a trail was an overwhelming decision, so I opted for a bit of familiarity, choosing a walking trail well below the paved bike trail we had explored the day before. I thought I might find a nook and read my book. I wasn’t focused on where I would end up, so I just started walking. As I became engrossed in the saturation of color and texture on my walk, I just kept walking — and walking. No destination in mind at this point. I saw evidence of wildlife that I had just missed. Dandelions carpeted much of the way, leaving a golden pathway. I came to a part of the path carved out with stones as if beckoning me somewhere — is this leading me to The Shire? Surely, I wouldn’t be lucky enough. But the puffy white clouds against the perfect blue sky (I’m sure that was at least a Carolina blue) and the earthy tones of a bubbling brook and rocky path as the deciduous trees were beginning to wake up were all enough to nourish my soul that day. I did not need to know where the path would end.

I was grateful that my mind was uncluttered from the noise of worries and anxieties. For far too often, I have traveled down paths equally as lovely but no competition for the smog of fret that clouded my view. The walk that day, however, was filled with a beautiful, quiet conversation with my spirit.

Earlier that morning, my friend Jill shared a similar feeling about our e-bike ride from one town to another. She noted a phrase that has been said before: “The journey is not more beautiful than the destination.” But we don’t always feel that way, do we?

At an earlier time in my life, I would have argued that the destination was the best part. After all, I would have the opposite reaction to homesickness. I am not certain it was wanderlust, but surely it was close.

But what makes a journey so beautiful? Is it the scenery? Maybe. Could it be the milder temps (at least in this case)? Quite possibly. I think it is the peace one carries. Peace makes it easier to see past the smog. And while we are at it, you do know that Peace is a Person? (His name is Jesus.) When you journey with the Peace Speaker, even a rough journey is graced with its own beauty. He speaks even in silent conversations. His presence alone is enough.

I was blessed to have selected an easy, gorgeous trail to trek that day, but there is no guarantee that my or your next path will be so glorious. Will you be able to walk in and with Peace?

Ashlie Miller meanders on trails, greenways, sandy shores and even just her own neighborhood in Concord. You may contact her at mrs.ashliemiller@gmail.com.