Finding the focus on getting away from the beach to the mountain

Turning to music for focus on getting away – extremes of beaches and mountains.

As summer (at least for my kids, which many of you parents out there can relate to being the north star of personal time off) comes to an end, I found myself in the Atlantic Ocean one day and the Rocky Mountains the next.

From the beach to the mountains to a serene park.

As my body adjusted to the 8,000-foot altitude change along with the time change, I found myself feeling distracted, despite being away.

How can I focus on No Distractions, the work I’m doing for clients, and my extended family that’s all out in the mountains with me all at once?

A spot in downtown Aspen, Colorado, held the quote that put it all back into focus. As has been the case for me since I was a teen, music was the catalyst:

"Music does bring people together. It allows us to experience the same emotions. People everywhere are the same in heart and spirit."

I read that quote on a rock in a serene place just behind a skatepark and next to a grocery store in Aspen – John Denver Sanctuary.

The park, named for the iconic singer-songwriter, features babbling brooks, a rock garden, and several large boulders quoting Denver and others like Leonardo da Vinci.

Well quickly escaping into the peacefulness just for a few minutes, I saw Denver’s quote sketched on a rock.

Denver was a guy who found focus in nature and sang about powers that can't be fully understood. And not fully knowing or understanding was OK.

"No matter what language we speak, what color we are, the form of our politics or the expression of our love and our faith, music proves we are the same."

That was the rest of Denver’s quote etched into a large boulder under the shade of a tree.

Imagine if we could all take that moment to detach: get lost in the mountains, dive under an ocean wave, or relax in that pocket park tucked away in a city. Use it as a reset while also connecting to something bigger than the individual. 

"People everywhere are the same in heart and spirit."

Now that's something to focus on.