Pink Daisies Part 11
“Mace, are you okay?” Mike asked me. I didn’t even realize he was trying to get my attention as I watched the running water.
He snapped his fingers, “HEY!”
“Huh?” I looked at him with my mouth hanging open.
“You okay babe?”
I shrugged, secretly hating the fact that he called me ‘babe.’
Mike had brought me out to the Niagara Gorge for the day.
Niagara Gorge is a glacially carved valley that has been continuously carved for the past 12,000 years. Glaciers melted and receded back to the Northern latitudes and the glacial outwash flooded the existing river valley gouging it out forming a steep walled gorge with flood waters rapidly flowing over a resistant ridge known as the escarpment.
Mike had asked around about a fun place where we could be basically alone, but at the same time have it be adventurous. He packed a picnic for us after we hiked the Devil’s Hole Ravine. Devil’s Hole Ravine is a deep, bowl-shaped basin of the Bloody Run tributary (we don’t have to get into why it’s called the Bloody Run tributary because the Seneca Indians didn’t kill British soldiers and then scalp them and toss them into the gorge or anything).
Devil’s Hole State Park overlooks the lower Whirlpool rapids. The walkway brings you down 300 feet into the wooded gorge of the tumultuous Niagara River to an outstanding view of the rapids.
Currently we were sitting on a boulder watching the water flow downstream towards the Whirlpool which is where the Niagara River changes direction due to the blocking of the St. David’s Buried Gorge by glacial silt in Canada.
I had managed to let the thrill of hiking down over 300 manmade steps leading to Devil’s Hole and climbing up and down hills to reach the water keep my mind off the latest problem in my life. Now that we had stopped testing our physical fitness, my mind fell back into that black hole labeled Jordan Staal.
“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about whatever it is that’s bothering you?” Mike asked, reaching over to massage my shoulders. “God, you’re really tense.”
“I didn’t sleep very well. Something came up yesterday that just…it just really affected me,” I explained as I stared at the Canadians on the other side of the water.
“What does it have to do with?”
My body tensed up. Mike removed his hands from my shoulders and on cue, I spilled, “…Jordan.”
His facial expression flashed.
“He started texting me yesterday. He was making fun of you. I haven’t talked to him in two years and it just tore me down. I don’t want him bringing me down again.”
“Then don’t. Ignore the texts.”
I shook my head, “That will just cause him to do it more. It’ll motivate him. I, I can’t take this. It ruined my mood today, it’s ruining today.”
“Look at me,” Mike said taking my hands. “The only person that can control whether or not the day is ruined is you. No one but you can control that. The day is still young, sweetie. Don’t let him manipulate your life.”
A tiny smile formed on my face and I leaned over to show my gratitude for everything he had done for me today with a passionate kiss.
“Where would I be without you? You really do prove everything wrong.”
The forever cute covering the face blush appeared, “Where would I be without you?”