A nice story! I've never been depressed or otherwise "down" except for the occasional bout of ennui, but even so an experience of beauty or sharing a joyful mood with friends is very refreshing and gives you a lot of energy.

Two questions not really related to the story (which I don't think you've mentioned before): Where do you get your water, from a well or do you have the municipal pipes coming in? And when you heat up the bathtub with a fire, do you put something like big flat stones at the bottom so the fire doesn't cook your butt to a crisp?