Shield the Valleys - Inspiration Thursday

"Should you shield the valleys from the windstorms, you would never see the beauty of their canyons." - Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

All Photos from Grand Canyon National Park, October 2014.

I stumbled across this quote shortly after our return from the canyon country of the southwest.  I wonder if it would have stuck with me so if I had not just been hiking and contemplating in the quiet, orange stillness of those towering canyon walls.  I find the phrase apt and lovely in both the literal and metaphorical sense.  Oh, so many windstorms we all encounter that shape us into who we are, beautiful and rugged, perfectly imperfect, with a story to tell.