60. The Great Lakes

This blog is, currently, my gratitude for things American and I'm enumerating them as I go.

            Erie, Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Superior…the Great Lakes. These huge inland fresh water seas lie huge in the American (and Canadian) imagination. Huge portions of our population have never seen those waters yet we all know about them. We know about the woods of their shores, the birch bark canoes of the Iroquois that have crested their waves. We know how they contributed to our westward migration. We know how they brought trade to the interior.

            And I think the Great Lakes are beautiful. Everywhere I’ve seen them (Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula) they are free of excessive human population. I also love water, so it’s no big surprise that I love how those lakes dwell in my imagination. They are big beautiful bodies of water that represent peace in not only the blue of their waters but the international border they form. They are a place where two nations can be calmed by healing waters, united by trade and made into the most powerful nations in the world. And like any body of water in my imagination they represent cleansing, forgiveness and relief from the stress of the world. I am so thankful for the great lakes and their beauty, their connection and their place in the imagination of North Americans.

59. Crater Lake

Sometimes my mind goes into overdrive with thoughts. What am I going to do about this? What am I going to do about that? And on and on. But other times I feel like I’m sitting atop Wizard Island on a calm sunny day looking into the eternal blue depths of Crater Lake. I know that image seems random but Crater Lake is a place of great serenity in my mind and that it is there while I may be miles away gives me great comfort.

            Sometimes we just have to take stock in those things that may momentarily be inaccessible and think about them. I’ve heard it said that Crater Lake is the deepest lake in North America and that seems plausible. It has a deep sapphire blue to it and all the negative thoughts in my mind can just be plunged into the depths of that beautiful lake to be gradually resurfaced in tiny increments with the rippling of the wind—tiny increments that don’t overwhelm me in the rush of a raging river but the contemplative serenity of a deep blue.

            Crater Lake is in the heart of the Oregon Cascades and its reality is always a vacation trip away for me, but sometimes even when I can’t go on vacation its presence in my mind is enough. Its presence gives me permission to leave my heavy thoughts alone and to let them disperse completely. That’s true with so many of the natural landscapes of our country. They allow us to realize we aren’t really that big of a deal. There are other things much bigger than us and that is ok. Sometimes we need to be reminded that we aren’t really very important in the whole scheme of things so our little self-manufactured problems are even less important. Places like Crater Lake remind us of beauty and help us forget our little uglinesses that we make all by ourselves. For me great depths of water in the high mountains remind me of the beauty in the world. And for that I am thankful for Crater Lake.

58. Moose

            I live in an area where there are plenty of moose. There is an extra large deer crossing sign south of here on US Highway 95 that is actually the place with the highest number of moose crossings in Idaho. The state highway department used to place a moose crossing sign there but it was stolen so often that they replaced it with a big deer crossing sign and a flashing light. If you hit a moose you will most likely die, it’s not just a matter of car damage.

            Moose are larger than horses for the most part. They have an extremely awkward appearance and usually wander alone. More often than not you’ll see the cows, but sometimes the bulls will wander around with their over sized racks looking comically fearsome. For whatever reason people fear them less than bear but that is human foolishness because they are far more dangerous and unpredictable than bear and they are also several times faster.

            I find moose to be awkwardly beautiful. Their legs are abnormally long allowing them to tread through deep snow or wade through lakes and rivers completely undisturbed by the water’s depths. They are an animal of the north and therefore they represent the isolation, desolation and fearsome beauty of those climes.

            I think the isolation of frozen wilderness, the awkwardness of a large amazing animal and the strange loneliness of a moose is a beautiful thing. These animals, in some strange way, remind me to get out of myself and to feel fine about being alone even when I’m surrounded by people. I certainly can’t claim to have their stature, nor do I feel like I stand out in any way as they do but like anyone I have those feelings of awkwardness and being alone. A moose reminds me of that beauty and strength in being awkward and I love that they are around me reminding me that it’s ok to be me. They are an elusive American icon of the north and I’m grateful for them.

57. The Palouse

            This area where I live is extremely beautiful. The Palouse of northern Idaho and eastern Washington is a hilly wonderland squeezed between the east slope of the Bitterroot Mountains, and the rising edge of the Columbia Plateau. It is made from the fertile volcanic ash that blasted forth from the Cascade Mountains thousands of years ago and was blown eastward by the prevailing winds. It is where the sage brush desert gradually rises into the mountains and scrapes the moisture from the easterly moving Pacific storms. The climate here is temperate with four complete seasons and now in the spring/early summer the Palouse is resplendent with green. Here the soil is not rocky so it retains the moisture it receives sending it back to the abundant wheat, canola, pea, lentil and other grains that make this area a veritable bread basket.

            Another great thing about living here, besides the abundant beauty of verdant rolling fields against a backdrop of evergreen forested mountains is the relative isolation. If you go north in Idaho you come up against beautiful mountain lakes that attract tourists. If you go north in Washington you come up against the metro area of Spokane. Here it’s quiet with few people except the occasional roadside photographer that often gets her snapshot published in some national calendar or magazine. In spite of that frequency of photographed splendor we still aren’t overwhelmed with tourists.

            The proximity of the lakes and Spokane along with the twin universities—Washington State University and the University of Idaho—give plenty of human activity for the residents of the Palouse but more often than not you will find us escaping the bustle and working the fields  or mountains where we live. This is a place of great beauty, just the right amount of human interaction and an abundance of natural resources. I can think of few other places that I would more want to call home than the Palouse.