A Story A Day. Story 317 of 365: Fog.

The pass opened in front of her. Two tall mountains and a dirt road in the middle, the mountains were green with grass and moss as far as she could see, no trees would grow there. It was a rocky terrain, a wild one. No one lived there, only animals, and not many of them. The fog wrapped around the twin peaks like silk. She had hopped for a sunny day, but a foggy one was the next best thing as far as it didn't rain. She shifted the weight of her backpack, the climb was steep, and she would need to be comfortable. She had left at sunrise, with the hopes of having crossed the pass around midday. She still had a long way until her final destination.

The gravel cracked under her feet as she walked through the dirt road. It had been easy so far, she just had followed the track by the lakes, it was plain, and it was beautiful in a calm way. The mountains had loomed over it all the time, reminding her that not everything in life was easy, and that they were waiting for her. She was ready, she had been ready for a long time, that was just one more effort along the road, an effort worth taking. As she advanced towards the pass the terrain changed, there were more rocks, it was harder to walk, she had to mind her feet more lest she injured herself. Her pace reduced to a crawl, her breath was heavy with the effort of climbing. She stopped now and then, trying to figure out how much longer would it take her to get to the highest point, but the more she looked the farther it seemed. She could feel the heavy weight of her backpack pulling her, making it harder to advance. She told herself she had to overcome it, that the mountains were waiting for her, and they would be disappointed if she didn't make it. The muscles on her legs tensed and relaxed at a time, and that was the only thing she could feel. The track was steeper at every step, but that only meant that she was getting closer to her objective.

When the ground was even again, it took her by surprise. She stopped and looked around, in front of her was another valley, almost the twin she has just left, behind her the road she had just taken, and, side to side, embracing her, the twin mountains, their peaks still lost between the fog. She smiled at herself, at the mountains, she thanked them for the challenge, and they silently welcomed her into their territories. She felt at home. Leaving her backpack by the side of the road, she took a deep breath and sat on some rocks to contemplate the road ahead, it was calling her. She rested a bit more, eating an apple, they would have lots of time to know each other, but that would be the only time she would see it like that. The road awaited.