it was freezing. But there’s a charm in that too. You don’t come to a place like this for comfort. You come to feel something real. To remind yourself that there’s beauty in starkness, in simplicity

This post, for me, is one of your best :) I grew up with that feeling. Many, many hours, many days I spent wandering around a mountain with my siblings. Winter, summer. Didn't matter. There is nothing to match that stillness today. I think if I went back to the same place, it wouldn't be the same, because now I'd worry about ticks and strangers in the woods. Back then, I worried only about finding my way home and falling off a cliff :)