The Park

"I find peace where the sun-kissed leaves dance 

in the melody of the breeze that floats through the air."

-- Saim Cheeda

Copyright © 2017

by Ralph F. Couey

A few decades ago, the rock band Chicago released a song entitled "Saturday in the Park," a kind of musical memory of a summer day in an unnamed city park.  The lyrics expressively described "People dancing, People laughing, a man selling ice cream singing Italian songs." And "People talking, really smiling, a man playing guitar singing for us all."  I've always liked that particular song more for the feelings those words sparked in me.  There was a day when people took the time to go to one of those magical green spaces.  Some played, some just...hung out.  Most of us can't do that these days because our schedules are chock-a-block with have-to-dos, and gotta-be-theres.  But I really think there's value in spending time there, even to just sit a spell.

I'm retired, which means that just about all I have is time.  There are still things I have to do, but they don't fill my every waking moment like they used to.  So now, I take the time.  

Sometimes the park is close enough to walk, other times it requires some time in the car.  But it always begins the same way.  As soon as I cross the sidewalk, the world changes.  The world goes away, and I am transported to a magical, peaceful place that might have only existed in Tolkien.  Sitting on a bench, I let my eyes drift across the green grass and trees.  I watch as the sun-dappled shadows of the leaves dance to the music of the breeze.  I clear my mind and just inhabit the moment.

Across the way, a group of high school cheerleaders practice their routines.  There's a group of boys shooting hoops.  People from the neighborhood sit at the picnic tables talking, smiling, laughing.  At the playground, children play under the watchful eyes of their mothers, there only concern being diligent at the only job they have, having fun.  A young couple stroll by, fingers intertwined, their faces reflecting that special joy that exists only in the very small world of being in love.

A park is a place of refuge; a deep green haven amidst the concrete, steel, and noise of the urban desert.  Here one can find the peace of contemplation, whether considering the simple beauty of a flower, or the direction of the next step on the path of life.  It is a place to find time you never knew you had, to let go of life's burdens even for a short space of time.  But to find such a moment means we have to stop driving by, pull off the road, and get out of the car.  Walk across the soft green grass, perhaps barefoot and thus leaving nothing between you and nature.  Listen -- really listen -- to the birds, the wind rustling the leaves.  Hear the shrieks and laughter of small children.  Feel the soft breeze brush your cheek, in that affectionate way only a beautiful day can do.  

An adult's life can be an ever-growing load of anger, frustration, and heartache which we insist on carrying around like a 75-pound backpack.  The beauty and peace of a park invites us to drop our burdens for a time, and just...breathe.  We can then exist in that moment of peaceful reverie.

Take the time; go to the park.  Explore, and find your healing peace.