Fish out of Water

     I wind my way through the tight quarters of the underground parking garage like some sort of mole and squeeze my mid-size sedan into a compact spot and hope no one sees. Check into my room and get settled in. I unpack bags and throw open the curtains and look down on the street 5 stories below and all of downtown Indianapolis...I am not a city guy...lots of concrete and asphalt. Construction non-stop...Everything looks gray and square to my eyes. No natural curves.

     The next couple days will be filled with everything municipal. Public safety, finance, human resources, ethics, etc...If it involves local government, there will be a seminar or break out session. The evenings will be filled with semi formal and business attire, everyone trying to look better and more important than the next...quite the show. Networking and catching up with old contacts. Dinners and night caps with vendors all vying for your business...

      Two days in, my mind and body have reached their limit of urban civilization. I dressed the part and can fit in well, I know my audience. But on the inside, my mind is like a wild animal locked in a cage. Pacing back and forth waiting for a chance to escape...Finally, the last class of the day and a semblance of freedom as I step on the treadmill. But it's a poor substitute for outdoors and grass...The air is stale, the thumping gym music is too loud and it smells like a combination of a locker room and a potpourri explosion!  I look down the row of fitness buffs and can't help but think that we are hamsters in a wheel...

     Night time at last...I peer out my view. The city does have a certain beauty that I can appreciate at night, the way the lights dance. But with all it's hurry up and rush, it's noise and it's smell, it can't compete with the natural beauty of the woods and ruralness that is such a part of me. 

     My head hits the pillow hard with a sigh...As I close my eyes and replay the days events and think about what lies in store for tomorrow, my mind slowly winds down. My heart rate relaxes and I find myself saddled up next to a huge oak stump over looking a well worn trail in the holler below me. The wind is cool on my face and my longbow is in hand...I can almost feel my shoulders tighten as the bowstring becomes taut. I can hear the distant foot fall of a deer as it makes its way to me and I drift off with a smile...I am home again, at least in my dreams...