greetings everyone! from waynesboro, pa.
glen and i just added the fourth state to our wildnerness romp...we've come over 200 miles now. wow!
i feel like a bonafide hiking woman...soggy, sooty, sore, and so in awe of all the beauty surrounding me...every day. i feel so honored to be able to make this journey. and so very grateful.
i want to thank all the wondermus spirits who helped me make this leap. (too many names to list, but you know who you are). my supportive loving family who, while often confounded (and amused) by my path, still choose to rally me on and always wish the best for me. thank you thank you thank you.
to donna and pennie who i miss enormously and carry with me every step of the way. to the sparkling spirits from my gathering tribes family who have colored my life with so much beauty and joy and supported my art and vision along the way. to all my friends in colorado and berkeley who have shared my life and enriched my time on this planet...and to my new friends and family in tennessee...who have welcomed me with open arms and given me a beautiful first impression of the south! yippeee!
more pix from the journey thus far...
yummy...
cool eerie tomb of a once famous war correspondent and political writer, Gath, in maryland. unfortunately, it sits empty. his style of writing fell out of fashion in the early 1900's, and he lost his fortune. he moved to philadelphia with his daughter soon after his wife died, and fell into a depression he never came out of. he had a vast estate which is now part of the state park. he commissioned a huge arch (see below) to honor all the war correspondents and artists from both the north and south regions. it's quite impressive... especially in the cool atmospheric morning mist.
do we see a "wet" theme here??
cool box turtle we startled back into its shell.
ahhhh...sunshine. took this as we were leaving harper's ferry. interesting town. so much history. and turmoil in that history. and revolt...revolution...brave voices in a time of much persecution.
you go john brown!
leaving harper's ferry...clean and freshly laundered. with a new brace around my knee. those steep stone climbs and descents (a stretch called the "roller coaster") wreaked havoc on my previously unchallenged knees. but hey, that which does not kill us makes us stronger, yes? absolutely!!!
look at that handsome man! (ps- Becca wrote this- not me) ; )
more views from harper's ferry.
we took a commuter train from harper's ferry into dc (where neither of us had been before) to visit some of the musuems and memorials. with our limited time, we were able to see portions of the museum of natural history, national museum of art, and the museum of the american indian.
here are some images from the trip.
a painting by fritz schoelder, one of my favorite artists, at the museum of the american indian.
some gaunt bronze figures by alberto giacometti at the natl museum of art.
beautiful bronze figures of ancient pre-humans at the natural history museum...along with...
muchos creaturas!!!
tho i'm not a big fan of taxidermy, i was stumbling through these halls like a giddy little kid snapping pictures everywhere of these four-legged beauties. soooo much inspiration as well as reference material for future becca paintings.
wowzers, huh??
did i mention how much fun we're having??
aside from the rain, bugs, sore muscles and joints...this is the best thing i've ever done. and i get to spend every day with this one. it just doesn't get any better.
we were reading from a book the other night that speaks about how to make every journey sacred. there were stories about basho, a wandering japanese poet and mystic whom many of you have heard of. he inspired us to write some haiku-esque poems of our own.
ancient mountains
timeless rain
evening sighs in verdant tones
leaves dangle in spiderwebs
stones stacked in ancient walls
a box turtle on the path
steady rhythm
emerald mountains
people show their beauty
when you're slow enough to see
quilting with turquoise yarn
in old raven rock shelter
wet notes on the tin roof
evening draws near
between the raindrops and birdsong
eternity whispers
far from home
soggy to the core
i wait and watch myself
something else basho wrote that he inscribed on his pilgrim's hat that i plan to write on my own:
"kenkon muju; doko ninin-"
"homeless i wander, in company with God."
and on that note...
i hand this over to the beauty-filled soul who accompanies me.
from glen....
Well, having just crossed over the Mason-Dixon line today from Maryland into PA, it seems a very fitting time to get some words out to you all bout this walk thru the country Becca and I find ourselves on. I went into this journey having no expectations other than the opportunity to spend half a year walking and travelling together. What I'm finding here in Appalachia is unlike any trip I've ever had, walking thru the lush verdant mountains - alive with birdsong and the first flowers of spring - perrennials springing forth from long abandoned homesites, the rock-stacked foundations and hearths nearly enveloped once more by the mosses, ferns, and irises contrasted just a few miles up the trail with a stroll down a bucolic lane - old country houses with gardens freshly tilled with spring, dogs barking from backyards and friendly waves from folks on their riding mowers - all rolled into a days experiences. This trip along the Appalachian Trail feels like a stroll thru the heart of America - not the pop-culture, media-riddled, hyper-alert bit we're fed on tv, but rather the one I remember as a kid - neighbors who look out for one another and smile at folks they pass on the street, folks who still have time for an impromptu chat with those they meet- genuinely interested in each other- and in life itself. From little trailside towns to the streets of DC, we've been shown so much kindness and love. Thats the most amazing thing this trip is opening me to- all this good-ness is still right in front of me- if I only slow down and listen... As reminder for accessing this, I've adopted the trail name "Sabi" - a Japanese word that translates as " the sigh of the moment"- I hope you may see a few of these captured in our pictures thus far-
My lovely companion, fellow adventurer and all around awesome gal- Becca, has take the trail name "Ripple", a constant reminder of the ever expanding influence we have on all we encounter(and of it upon us!)
Much Love and Warmth, Dear Friends-
