Of Mountains
Why are we drawn to the highlands? Rugged and inhospitable. Conveniences few; weather, harsh and unpredictable. Everyplace seems uphill.
Mountains are simply folds and uplifts in the earth's crust, or remnants of volcanic calderas. They are not built of mystical materials - why are they mysterious?
Birthplaces of headwater streams; guardians of elk nurseries. Yes, there is mystery there.
Yet it goes deeper. Going into the mountains forces choices to simplify; to focus on the critical few. We can't carry as much as in the flat lands. Each item in our pack must be chosen carefully.
Maybe there is an ancient need for elevation - which brings objectivity and perspective.
"I never understood until the past months why the Master so often withdrew alone into the wilderness. There is not only food and medicine for one’s body; there is also healing for the heart and strength for the soul in nature. One gets very close to God…in these temples of God’s own building.”
― Harold Bell Wright, The Shepherd of the Hills
Mountains are simply folds and uplifts in the earth's crust, or remnants of volcanic calderas. They are not built of mystical materials - why are they mysterious?
Birthplaces of headwater streams; guardians of elk nurseries. Yes, there is mystery there.
Yet it goes deeper. Going into the mountains forces choices to simplify; to focus on the critical few. We can't carry as much as in the flat lands. Each item in our pack must be chosen carefully.
Maybe there is an ancient need for elevation - which brings objectivity and perspective.
"I never understood until the past months why the Master so often withdrew alone into the wilderness. There is not only food and medicine for one’s body; there is also healing for the heart and strength for the soul in nature. One gets very close to God…in these temples of God’s own building.”
― Harold Bell Wright, The Shepherd of the Hills
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