My birthday

One year ago today, I celebrated my birthday in Death Valley. Lacey and I packed the bare essentials and flew out West to camp and hike for five days in one of the most brutal environments on Earth. Today we celebrated the date by taking our daughter to Maymont Park in the sunny, perfect weather of early May.

Two celebrations, a world apart. Gone for now are the days of globe-trotting adventures for Lacey and me. We traveled extensively in recent years knowing that luxury would be finite. At the time, it was hard to imagine a life centered around our home, a life that wasn't enthralled by the exploration of the distant corners of our world.

I don't write this with animosity. I once thought that I might later look back on those adventures with a sense of longing for what once was. But today I never wished I was anywhere else. A year ago, miles into a desolate, lifeless canyon under a baking desert sun, I turned to Lacey and said, "this is exactly where I want to be right now." I couldn't think of another location or activity that would be superior to that moment. Today, sitting with my wife and daughter on a carpet of green less than 10 miles from our home, I had the exact same thought.

This is exactly where I want to be.