Went to Joseph Canyon, just South of the Grande Rhonde River in Washington Sunday and had a wonderful hike with Richard. We were a week or so too early for the Arrowleaf Balsom Root but the weather was great. Today it snowed. I took some other pictures but because the canyon was so vast and I didn't capture the scaled, they are unimpressive - bland actually.  

Life can be full of distractions. But exactly, what are we being distracted from? I think this is individual. Distractions can be petty, like being distracted at dinner time by reading the newspaper. Sometimes we use distraction to avoid painful choices in life - this can be less than petty. The problem is we are poor judges of when our distractions are mild and when they are holding is back from living a full and engaged life. Ultimately distractions keep us from being present with whatever is happening and being present to whatever is happening is the path to leading a virtuous life.

Rather than worrying about distractions, focus on being present and when we notice that we are drifting away from being present, just return. This is hard work and something I’m practicing with mixed success.