Homeness

There are two places on earth where I feel a sense of “homeness”.  One is Glacier National Park, and the other is the Crab Orchard Mountains, the last westward strands of the Appalachians before the long plains to the Rockies.  Yesterday, my lover was driving us through the old familiar trails of the Crab Orchard range.  They are just transforming into their fall colors, and green still held sway.  It was such overwhelming beauty, a serenity of soft color, heart-warming visuals, like old photos of my youngest years.  Eternity must be something like this: time is lived in totality, all memories become present at all time, a never-ending reel of joy, peace, and gladness in a body fully realized.  I sensed I was nearly home. 

Yesterday, my lover found this picture of me and my siblings in an old box of mine.
I am the third from the left, age 6, standing in 
front of Big Rock Mountain, ready for church.  That mountain, and 
church, have been two of the biggest influences of my life.