This is where we're headed next. It's a peak just outside of town that has
a great view of the St. Joe River Valley. See the very top of it? That's
where we'll end up.
This is the road leading up the hill. You may also recognize it as the
picture at the top of my home page. It's such a nice shot that I never
tire of looking at it. Something about a dirt road winding its way between
the trees always puts me in mind of analogies about life. Something like
"The road may be rough, but the scenery makes up for it."
Looking at the road, I can almost smell the dry dust baking in the sun.
It coats the tree limbs, thrown there by passing vehicles. And how about
the smell as the first rain in a couple months drenches it? Wonderful!
We've left the main road now. This field sits below the last and steepest
track to the top of the hill. I've spent many hours here. As a kid, my
friends and I hunted ground squirrels in it. More recently, I just park
myself under that big poplar tree and listen to the bugs sing about things.
If I'm lucky, I usually see a hawk or two soaring high above, searching the
grassy stretches for mice. I don't know about you, but I never get enough of
sitting under trees on warm summer days.
A closer look at the big poplar. When the wind blows through the leaves of
a poplar tree, it's about the most perfect sound on earth. White and calming,
no harmony or plan--just an easy whisper. You tend to forget sounds like
that in the city. They're all mixed up with the hum and grumble of human
stress and striving. But, as they say, that's progress...