There’s a saying that goes,
“If you keep doing
what you’ve always done,
you’ll keep getting
what you’ve always got.”

I think
that there’s a lot of truth in that.

Today we went to Tollymore,
a place we know well,
but instead of following
our usual route
along the banks of the Shimna
we followed a mountain path
frequented, it appears,
by only mountain bikers and foresters.
And we made so many discoveries
along the way!

We found tall, slender trees
with smooth, golden bark,
and a wee holly tree
sprouting, high above our heads,
on the branch of a dying, great oak.

We found snow-capped peaks,
mountain streams and waterfalls
arched stone bridges
and granite seats.

We made so many discoveries
in a place we thought we knew so well
simply because we chose
to go a different way!

Lord,
in all aspects of my life,
remind me to have the courage
to be more adventurous in my choices
because
if I keep doing
what I’ve always done,
I’ll keep getting
what I’ve always got.

© Claire Murray, 13th December 2015