For amber waves of grain
For purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain
America, America, God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
That song must have been written by someone who actually crossed the country. I traveled for 3 days on a train and was captivated by the landscape unfolding before me. West Virginia was rolling and green and you could see the poverty, Indiana was all corn fields, Wisconsin seemed surprisingly suburban, North Dakota surprisingly watery, most of Montana flat and arid until all of a sudden the Rockies rose up. We took a drive one day through Glacier National Park. The power of the glaciers, the thrust of the earth shifting, and the devastation of wildfire was stunning... let alone the heights and danger of twisting roads and rockslides.
There's too much to see and take in.
I flew back this weekend. a 2 hour jaunt from Montana to Minneapolis, a short layover, and another 2 hours back to Philadelphia. How could such an expanse that took 3 days to cross by train zip by so swiftly under my feet?
I hope I can hold on to the sense of relaxation and beauty that has filled me up over the last week.
This is great!
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