It’s good to be back! I spent most of this week camping in the Bald Eagle State Forest. After I set up base camp, I walked down to the edge of Penns Creek and stood watching the water and enjoying the beautiful fall foliage. 

 

 

Yes, I’ve been busy with preserving the harvest from our garden and getting ready for my daughter’s wedding, but as I stood there breathing in the crisp scent of the leaves, I realized it was life in general that had started to feel too fast. 

While I was camping, I did a lot of nothing. I sat by the campfire reading, I took naps, I wrote a few letters, I took long walks in the woods – and of course, I went looking for mushrooms. 

 

 

It was a reminder that even when our goal is to slow down and live a simpler, more self-sufficient life, that goal can carry us away with it just as easily as any other lifestyle. 

Folks, when it was time to pack up and come home, I have to be honest, I wanted to stay. I wanted to keep sleeping in a tent in the chilly night air. I wanted to spend hours in the woods picking mushrooms. I wanted to keep reading by a campfire and even go on smelling like one. 

 

 

It was good to get away and recharge my batteries. It was even better to gain some perspective and set some new goals -- remembering to stop and take a moment to breathe more often being one of them and mapping my favorite mushroom spots on Google Maps is another. 

With all that being said, I’m looking forward to bringing you lots of great new articles from all of our Rural Sprout writing team starting on Monday. 

While it was a quiet week over at Rural Sprout, you should head over there and have a peek. Rural Sprout has a whole new look and layout. I think you’re going to love it. And while you’re there, don’t forget to read Lydia’s piece about growing hops for home brewing.