This article first appeared in CMC student Bailey Peth’s blog Loving Life at 6700 ft
Music: The String Cheese Incident, Naive Melody (This Must Be the Place)
It is odd how a place can turn into a home so quickly. I lived more or less in the same house for eighteen years, and it only took a couple of months for Steamboat to become my home. It took exactly one day for me to be comfortable in this town and with the other kids in the dorms.
But the meaning of home runs deeper than comfort. This is the place my heart aches to be. This is where I plan on returning when I am old and tired to lay my head down for good. The air in this valley meets my lips sweeter than anywhere else. The sky is a better shade of blue here. I couldn’t live in a more perfect place even if I thought one up in my imagination and it sprang into being.
Roughly ten days into my winter vacation my heart began to itch for this valley. Seeing my family was wonderful and I was grateful for the time with them, however ten days was too long to be away from my home. My heart longed for the wide open skies and sweeping winds, and for the trees completely encased in snow so that they looked like a most delicious white chocolate treat.
Upon my much awaited return I spent two days where everyone was excited. Smiles and hugs were exchanged all around, people greeted friends whom they hadn’t seen in a month, although it felt like years. Everything it seemed, was perfect.
And then,
As this new semester began we all flexed our mental muscles, stiff from a month-long vacation and found it to be uncomfortable. Simple habits had to be re-learned, like going to class and keeping a somewhat normal schedule. The first week was a struggle for everyone, I could see it in their faces and their longing glances out of windows during class. I could see it in the way they walk. I as well found it hard to readjust. We drank more coffee, and tried to fix our schedules to be somewhat bearable.
We embraced our home, even if it meant a full-time schedule yet again.
And now, a week later everyone has relaxed again into the busy season of mountain life. For it is indeed necessary to relax into it. It wont due to be stressed in the winter time; this is after all the reason we live here.