Another perfectly sunny Spring day hiking alone in the Alsace mountains … what a life.
The meandering path of circumstance and chance that has brought me to this exact point here today is more unlikely than a lottery win … but here I am, carrying on regardless; slightly startled, still exhilarated, not working, briefly liberated.
In a vast meadow opening, a bright yellow butterfly greets me, darting around in different directions all at once.
A deer in the distance briefly stops to inspect the scene, before moving on higher up the mountain.
Hidden waterfalls and secret gorges are the pay-offs for my trek through the Alpine wilderness.
This is quite possibly the most perfect day.
The journey onwards takes me to Mulhouse, a busy city where the multitude of people rushing around in the banality of secret lives is something approaching overwhelming.
Dinner in a small restaurant is quite ridiculous … a knuckle of ham served with boiled potatoes in a Munster cheese sauce, washed down with a local ale.
When I retire to sleep, I swear I’m still smiling.
An Outside World 