The road streches further than memory.
Here, they dragged an ancient forest and beat down the rocks and soil. A new forest grew. I climb the mountain with legs like theirs and sometimes still find their tools.
So much they didn't understand. So much more they knew.
Oh yes!
ReplyDeleteI collect pictures of roads like this.
They take me home.
Very awesome picture, Jason. =D
ReplyDeletePictures like this one are like the places where I spend my outdoor time and you gave this one its own special meaning by your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, Michigan has a wonderful logging lore if you are interested in those times.
I love this pic! I can almost smell what its like there. Earthy, icy, clean.
ReplyDeleteI've walked old logging roads like this before. Water proof boots are a must!
ReplyDeleteNice picture, jason. :)
Stretches further than memory...GREAT line, Jason. You really do have a way with words.
ReplyDeleteBernita, feel free to walk this one.
ReplyDeleteKelly, =)
Eric, yes, logging lore is fascinating. The north end of this land has a north-facing ravine with a handful of old growth hemlocks. It must've been too steep to log. Those trees are real treasures.
Terri, it's beautiful country. The Christmas carol "Walking in a Winter Wonderland" was written in this county.
Jeff, I've done a bit of work to keep the springs under control. It's back-breaking, but a nice change from the office. I've gained the greatest respect for our forefathers.
Melissa, thank you! It's always wonderful to hear comments like that from other writers.
Beautiful picture!! I can close my eyes and hear the crunch of our forefather's boots, the cutting of the saw they used. The falling of the trees. They probably pulled the trees out by hand.
ReplyDeleteMy hubbie works for a logging company and they use big machines for the cutting and dragging of the trees.
It gives you respect for our forefathers. They cut their path in this world by back breaking work.
"So much they didn't understand. So much more they knew."
ReplyDeleteSo true, SOOOO true.
Another good one, Jason.
Reminds me of the road to my old home....wahhhh! I wanna go back! Thanks for sharing! :)
ReplyDeleteI love pictures of winding roads because I like to imagine what's around the bend. :-)
ReplyDeleteTanya
BeadingalinMS, I can hear the boot-crunches too.
ReplyDeleteDana, so much important knowledge is being lost--how to create and survive with our own hands.
Robin, perhaps it's just around the bend.
Tanya, it's never disappointing (except when it leads to a housing development).
I love it. Isn't prose poetry great? It really allows for so much more than a structured poem would, yet it places the same emphasis on beauty of words and sounds. This is really nice.
ReplyDeleteI rarely read other comments, but I was curious as to what others thought of this piece.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Kara. I guess it's why I abandoned the structure of poetry in my last few posts.
Your last line is a paradox, but I think I get it. Perhaps the people who built the rode didn't realize they were destroying sacred space, but also knew she would find a way of growing back.(??)
How beautifully wintry!
ReplyDeleteKara, I still appreciate the economy and artfulness of poetry. The problem is that structured, rhyming poems take much more effort to write than poetry prose. I guess it's like the difference between Mozart and Phantom of the Opera. I feel more achievement with the former, but more expression with the later.
ReplyDeleteMermaid, we are moving to such a specialized society. Folks train for particular, highly technical tasks. In that model, we can only survive as a community, not alone. Knowledge three hundred years ago was more grounded in the Earth and wide-ranging skills. Each individual was more capable of survival alone. Therefore, they "understood" less about the world, but "knew" more about living with no buffer between them and the environment.
Jane, thanks! Winter has been in short supply in the northeastern United States.
ahhhhh.
ReplyDeleteand *sigh*
nice, nice.
Anne, thanks. Enjoy your walk in the woods. :)
ReplyDeleteThat's a very restful picture. Looks like a place I wouldn't mind walking to sort through my thoughts.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
Michele, forests are wonderful that way.
ReplyDeleteOnce again, a beautiful piece of writing with yet another beautiful picture. Very nice!
ReplyDelete