Contentment

I encountered this elderly couple a few times during my summer vacation at Arches National Park. They were older but very spry and tackled the steep climbs in the heat as well as most folks half their age.

Their memory has stuck with me – partly because we saw the gentleman take a tumble off the side of a cliff – a fall that I was certain would be his last. Thankfully, he caught himself and scurried back up without incident.

I also think of them sometimes because of this picture. They were almost perfectly in sync with each other – they appeared to walk in step and often stood like this, like a couple of bookends.

More importantly, they just seemed satisfied to be together. Partners in life and hiking and exploration. It was nice to see two people who, at least from an outside perspective, were absolutely content.

If only we all were so lucky.