Beauty all around
20/08/13 04:42
There has always been a bit of wanderlust in me. I love to travel and I can think of places that I would like to go and sights that I would like to see. The list of places to visit is longer than my ability to travel and I will never run out of interesting trips that I would like to take. Dreaming and planning is an important part of travel for me and I get great pleasure out of imagining trips that I may never take.
Being a wanderer, I can imagine the beauty of Alaska, or South Africa. I can imagine myself exploring India or Thailand or taking the train across Siberia. I’d love to go to New Zealand or American Samoa or Tahiti. A visit to Scandinavia would be wonderful just to look at the historic boats and visit with boat builders.
The problem with such a love of travel is that one can be complacent about the place where one is. And I have the good pleasure of living in a beautiful place. I don’t have to travel to see great beauty.
I have always lived in places that are rich in natural beauty. I grew up North of Yellowstone Park in Montana with the mountains always in sight and blue ribbon trout fishing right outside of my door. There was plenty of scenic beauty all around. Growing up in an aviation family, I was able to see many beautiful sights from the air. I took it for granted that I could look down on the falls of the Yellowstone or Mammoth Terrace or the Norris Hot Springs. Granite Peak at nearly 13,000 feet was in an area where we regularly flew and flying by the spectacular mountain was a regular occurrence. We played in a gorgeous fresh water river and backpacked at the edge of the wilderness.
I went to college at the base of the rimrocks in Billings. We had opportunities for climbing and exploring caves within walking distance of the campus. Billings is only 80 miles from my hometown and we had opportunities to visit the Beartooth and other mountains throughout my college experience. I belonged to a touring group that traveled all around Montana and Northern Wyoming and got to see places that were new to me.
Seminary was in Chicago, where all you have to do is head east to find the seemingly limitless expanse of Lake Michigan. You can count on dramatic sunrises over the lake whenever you go to the edge of the city. Our time in Illinois also gave us the opportunity to travel to and from Montana in all kinds of weather and to see the upper plains in all of their glory.
From Chicago, we moved to southwest North Dakota. I had lived in Montana long enough to have developed a bias about real mountains, alpine lakes and clear mountain streams. I wasn’t sure that I would enjoy the prairie on the edge of the badlands. But my biases were all based in ignorance. North Dakota is beautiful and there is much to see. Spotting antelope alongside the Grand River is a treat not to be missed. Exploring Theodore Roosevelt National Park is a treat for anyone who is interested in natural beauty.
Next we spent a decade in Idaho at the base of the Boise range. We were right between the desert and the mountains with quick and easy access to both. I used to brag that I could ski and mow my lawn on the same day and often did so. Idaho has a great deal of wilderness and although access can be challenging, there are good ways to get away from people and into the midst of incredible scenic beauty with a little effort. We camped and skied and swam in the hot springs and fished the clear waters in the time that we lived there.
And now I live in the Black Hills with a daily visit from wild turkeys and deer fawns playing in my back yard. Our home is on a hill with great views to the north and east – a perfect place for catching the sunrise. We live just minutes from a gorgeous lake. Every once in a while I have to remind myself that people from all around the country scrimp and save so they can afford to visit the hills for a vacation. I get to live here all the time. When the plains are sweltering on a hot, dry, windy August day, we sleep in the natural cool with a breeze blowing in our windows. Whenever I want, I can take a canoe and head out on a lake to check out the ducks and geese and herons and eagles and perhaps even a visit from a beaver. With the exception of bears, almost all of the wild animals of my growing up live within a very short distance from my home: deer, elk, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, mountain lions, bobcats, antelope.
I still have a deep love of traveling. I still plan trips to exotic places in my mind. I still love maps and can spend hours staring at “Google Earth” on my computer. And I believe that there are a few more grand excursions in store for us before we reach the end of this life’s journey. But I hope that I never lose the ability to open my eyes to see the things that are close by. A visit to Sylvan Lake and a walk to the top of Mt. Harney can be accomplished in half a day. Bear Butte is there for the climbing. The game loop of Custer State Park is always worth a drive and the wild donkeys are entertaining and interesting. Wind Cave and Jewell Cave are worthy of much more exploration. Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse can provide inspiration. Sheridan, Angostora, Deerfield and Pactola are just the larger reservoirs. There are plenty of small ones to explore as well. The badlands are a short drive away. There is much to see.
The glory of God surrounds us. Sometimes all we need to do is to remember to open our eyes.