Waking up and looking outside through the mesh window of the hunter green tent, I feel the crisp morning air. The sun beams through the leaves on the thousands of trees surrounding me. A few feet away, Dad makes breakfast over the fire.

I get up and walk over to the pond in the woods of Michigan and drop to my knees and wash my face. I look over and see a deer drinking from the same pond. This is what God has made for us.

Once everyone gets ready, we head off for the day. First, we walk up the hill and enjoy the view. Overlooking the hundreds of acres of land, my family and I stand appreciating the beautiful Upper Peninsula. Living in the suburbs of Milwaukee, we don’t see this back home.

A peace falls over me as if everything in the world was gone, leaving just me and nature. The sun moves across the sky, as if it were a bird migrating south for the winter.

Next, we walk to a river and one by one cross it, jumping on rocks. The water rushes as if it was a kindergartener excited for the first day of school. Zach almost loses his balance and falls in, but Dad catches him.

As lunch approaches, we make our way to a wide-open field. We take out a blanket and enjoy our lunch under the brisk Michigan air. We continue to walk around for the rest of the day, making our way to the huge boulders, the bluffs, and the bay.

As the day winds down, we head back to our campsite. The peaceful quiet walk ends when Zach falls in a hole which a clunk. As we laugh, he climbs out and we continue our journey home.

Dad makes another fire for us to make dinner on. While he cooks, Mom and I set up our chairs around the fire and get out plates. We sit around the fire and and enjoy our dinner and sing campfire songs.

I look up into the sky, the stars dancing across the sky as if they were in the Nutcracker. As night approaches, Dad puts out the fire and we make our way over to the tent.

Laying there awake, I listen to the sounds. Nothing. All the animals are sleeping and there are no neighbors to hear. As I lay, I think to myself can’t for tomorrow! I hear Mom on the other side of the tent. She says, “Goodnight,” and I fall asleep instantly.