Flashback Friday (Late Edition!): The Canyon

(Is it fair to call this Flashback Friday even though it's Saturday?  Probably not, but at least I'm starting it up again!)

 

Above pictures from the cabin this last week.

Driving up the canyon to the cabin got me thinking.  I love the Provo Canyon.  It somehow manages to take my breath away, no matter the time of year.  As we wound our way along the Provo River, watching the waterfalls and trees whiz by, my nostalgia kicked in (as usual.)  I have some pretty good memories in that canyon.  Here are some moments I would love to relive.

We woke up Saturday morning feeling lethargic.  About as hungover as you can feel without actually consuming alcohol the night before.  Our heads ached, and our hearts had whiplash.  So we ran to the car and drove to the refuge of the canyon.  We stopped on a viewpoint at the side of the road, and some cathartic silliness happened.  I always felt like I could take on the world with these girls by my side.  BYU would not have been the same without them.  Pictures circa November 2008.

"The Almost Camping Trip" Circa October, 2007.  

It started out like a good idea.  New friends, quick trip up the canyon, escape from the pressures of college life.  Except it started to rain.  And, oh my, was it ever cold.  So. Cold.  So Ben and Kaleb tried out an anti-rain dance (pictured above).  But apparently it was a wind dance, because after that, the wind started howling.  Yeah, we chickened out and drove back to Provo.  Why is this experience of misery one of my favorites?  Because I feel like it solidified our friendship, if it hadn't been already.  Nothing brings you together like Mother Nature's cruelty.

I don't know what it was about the canyon, but there was something therapeutic about the twists and turns.  It seemed that even if you began the drive feeling like ripping someone's head off..

...you always left a little more at peace with yourself, and with the world.  Whether you achieved that through screaming the lyrics to your favorite song with your best friend, or sitting quietly alone with your thoughts, or running and jumping and laughing off the steam, it happened.  I think Provo Canyon may be my Zen place.