My friend Alan Felts and a friend of his took a hike on an old road in McDowell County, West Virginia where they live and Alan posted the following comments and these phtos---and much more---on his Facebook page. Alan is a deeply spiritual man and a great photographer, and Belcher Mountain is home to him. That mountain feels to me like a place that encourages spirituality and reverence for creation. When I have been there, and when I see photos from there, I think of Ola Belle Reed's song "High On A Mountain." I know that some of you get tired of hearing me refer to this song, but this is an important anchor in my spiritual life.
I am posting this with Alan's permission and with the thought that his words and the photos will make an excellent Lenten meditation for some of us. How many roads have we traveled with others and how many of these have been lost? What do our memories weigh in our lives? Do you feel a resposibility to carry on and tell the stories of those roads and those people? How does this connect to your religion and your spirituality? Where is your "thin space" and are you taking good care of it?
Me and my boy Fritz decided to take a hike along the original road bed that you used to take up Belcher Mountain. If I remember correctly, my grandfather always told me this road was built by hand by convicts. It was humbling to think the last time I was on this road was with my grandfather many years ago. I imagined he and his twin brother walking this road when they were kids. It's hard to imagine that a road once heavily traveled has been lost to the ages, except for the few of us that know it's story and location.
The same can be said for each of our lives. In the end, it will be a select few that remembers us, and eventually we will become but a whisper on the memory of time. Enjoy your family and loved ones ya'll, the memories you make today will become the fading memories of tomorrow. Keep telling their stories so they will continue to brighten our hearts!
"You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore." - Psalm 16:11 ESV
"Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure." - Proverbs 4:26 ESV
"Stay true to yourself, yet always be open to learn. Work hard, and never give up on your dreams, even when nobody else believes they can come true but you. These are not cliches but real tools you need no matter what you do in life to stay focused on your path." -Phillip Sweet
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