Serenity

Although I didn't have a camera with me the entire time and so have to rely for right now on getting pictures off of my cousin's facebook, I still wanted to throw a picture up on the blog to show what I did over the weekend.

I attended our Joes Valley Olsen Family Reunion which occurs every even year. Let me tell you that I adore this reunion. With over 400 people, I don't know even a fraction of my relatives but the Olsen Ranch, which was homesteaded by my great-great-grandfather Abinadi Olsen of whose heritage I am so grateful and proud of, is absolutely so beautiful and one of my favorite places in the world. Look at it! This is the pond where we used to fish but no longer do because the restocking of the pond became too much, and we use it now for -freezing- dips and skipping rocks and meditation and pictures and long chats.

I have camped in this gorgeous section of Earth every even year of my life, excepting the year I was born in. Over the years, my Joes Valley experience has changed as I have. It's gone from exploring the dirt to picking the flowers to trying to meet the cute cousins (yes, we're related, but that doesn't mean we can't try to get them as a partner for square dancing) to building a dam in the river to just wandering and talking and laying in a field staring up at the stars contemplating this universe and the God that has placed us in it.

I am so blessed to have the most incredible family that has ever existed and although I know that the upcoming years will bring changes to the Joes Valley I know and love, the experiences I've had have shaped my life and I couldn't be more grateful.