I went for a walk along the causeway to the arboretum last Sunday. It was a lovely warm sunny day for a walk. What I love most about walking in the arboretum is there are places where you can just about convince yourself that you’re not in the middle of a city. It’s not that the arboretum is like being in the unspoiled countryside. Every bit of it is very much a park and looks like it. But, every so often, when the wind is blowing in the right direction to silence the noise of traffic on the beltline, you look out across a lake to watch turtles splash from a log into the water, or glance up into into a thick stand of trees to catch the rays of the morning sun through the leaves and, for a few moments, you’re not in Madison anymore.

The moment doesn’t always last. You are, in fact, in the middle of a busy city. But those moments can be a tonic for the soul.