“Hi, hon.”

My husband had just gotten home from work.

“I forgot the roast beef.”

“What?” I asked confused.

“Dammit! I forgot the roast beef. I had this roast beef I was going to bring home, with au jus, and I forgot it.”

He’s literally starting to panic.

“That’s okay,” I tell him. “It’s no big deal.”

“It is a big deal. We have to go back.”

“Oh, come on. Seriously? Did you leave it out?”

“No, I don’t think so. But I can’t be sure.”

I know he’s lying and he knows he’s lying. He knows damn well he didn’t leave it out. He’s just a fat kid wanting his roast beef. I get it. Every morning I wake up salivating over my daily egg wrap: three eggs, reduced-fat mozzarella, Slap Ya Mama spice, and turmeric, all wrapped in a low-carb tortilla. It’s what gets me up in the morning. It’s what I dream about at night when I go to bed hungry. It’s my only “cheat” meal of the day and it’s not even a cheat meal. I get it, fat man. But still, driving twenty minutes there and twenty minutes back is extreme, even for me.

“Let’s go,” he says. “Grab the dogs.”

Are you kidding me? I sigh, grab some blankets, grab the dogs, and off we go. I’m annoyed, but I get it. I’m a little OCD myself, and the idea of some forgotten roast beef would probably drive me nuts too.

We climb into the truck and hit the road. It’s beautiful out…rolling hills, farms, trees, and a soft late-afternoon light that makes everything glow. My fat dog is happy, and his sister is too.

We arrive at his work, Ten Mile River Preserve, and it’s gorgeous. Wide green fields, a big barn, a few outbuildings, and that peaceful countryside hush that settles in at the end of the day. I’ve been there before, but never when it’s this quiet. Never when the light is like this.

I start snapping photos, the wispy clouds catching my eye, the warm splashes of sunlight, and the clean lines of the barn. I want to remember the peacefulness.

“Do you like our new flag?” Michael asks. “It’s seventy-five feet high.”

“I love it,” I say, lining up another shot with the flag in the frame.

He shows me around a bit, and I love watching him in his element. He finds the roast beef, which of course he hadn’t left out, and we load up the dogs and head home.

Guess what we had for dinner?

It’s always the spontaneous, unexpected trips that end up meaning the most to me. That evening reminded me how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place, and how something as random as forgotten roast beef can inspire a painting.

This painting captures that moment at Ten Mile River Preserve, with the new flagpole, the wispy clouds, and the warm countryside glow.

And somewhere, hidden deep inside one of those buildings, lies some delicious roast beef with au jus sauce.