Reminiscing is Reminixcent of Rambling

While I was brushing my teeth tonight, all I wanted to do was take a nice long walk outside.  Yes, it is almost midnight but I really love the crisp in the air and the darkness.  It would be nice and relaxing and something I would have done almost 20 years ago.  (Yikes, just because able to say that makes me feel old.)

I remember the couple times I would sneak out of my house in Lake Elsinore to go to my friend's house down the street.  There were not many street lights so I could see the stars clearly.  I would breathe in the cool air and it filled my lungs with rejuvenation.  I can still smell the pepper trees and feel their tiny leaves and pepper pods between my two fingers.

Even though I only snuck out a handful of times, I would do a lot of walking from one house to the next on the property where I lived.  We were on 2 1/2 acres and there were three houses on it.  For the most of my time there, the front house was my grandparents, the small studio type house was where my Great-great Aunt lived, and we lived in the mobile home in the back.  The next best thing to walking in the nice blanket of nighttime, was walking the driveway in my bare feet.  The driveway was all dirt but I really liked the feeling of the cool, soft, fine dirt between my toes.  The occasional stray rock or twig hurt but that didn't stop me.

Sometimes, I would let the darkness scare me.  One time we had a homeless man living in our tree house.  But for the most part, I wasn't scared.  My favorite was when it was a full moon. I loved how well I could see.

I really miss that right now.  If it weren't for the fact that things have changed since I was younger, I would go for a walk all by myself right now - just like when I was a teen - NO cell phone, NO ipod, NO mp3 player - just me, my thoughts, and nature's cold blanket of night.