The Wall

The wall was built long ago, by whom no one is certain. It is known to be ancient, dated to 400 AD. Cherokee legend holds that the wall was built, the area nearby inhabited, by a tall, bearded, "moon-eyed" race of people. Intriguing as these mysteries may be, this wall holds very special memories for me.

As young children, Matthew and I played over and along this thousand foot wall atop Ft. Mountain, devising make believe battles, pitting good against evil, sharing and trading our fantasy roles. As teenagers, we made love here...a small tent pitched at the base of the wall, beneath star-studded skies. Matthew was my first love...a love grown from friendship, evolved, and ultimately a relationship 'broken' by common circumstance. After high school I left to pursue an art degree at a small college in Rhode Island. Matthew left town to pursue...adventure!

Oh, we stayed in touch over the years, seeing one another on various occasions that would bring us back home. Yet, we rarely talked of our shared adventures on that mountain. Now, some 30 years since we left town, we have decided to return to the wall and see what great mysteries might await us there.

The wall was built long ago. For that we are certain. Yet, we are equally as certain that our friendship will remain long after these rocks, this wall, have crumbled into dust.

Convenient Journey

The end

is not

the end.

It is

beginning

again.

It is

convenient

for those

in need

of a

destination

to mark

the journey.

Create Love, Not War

The legacy of heroes

marred by the few

who would take us to war

without a clue

of who we are fighting

and what we are fighting for.

I've had enough.

I say no more.

What we need are leaders

who understand love...

that is in each of us,

that comes from above.

An eternity of warring

could come to an end.

We could start now.

Please let us begin

to heal the wounds,

forget the past...

from this moment forward

build a peace

that will last.

A Thread That Runs, Part 2

It was a bright, sunny day, and all was just right as Nell rocked in harmony with the universe. Just as she was a about to take the glass of lemonade to her lips, she noticed a beautiful, golden thread leading away from the porch. She set her glass down, and followed the thread, perfectly visible, sparkling in the noonday sun. It led through the trees and across the grassy meadow. In the distance she saw what appeared to be a large, golden needle laying on the ground, the golden thread running through the eye. Just as she was about to crawl through the eye, she awoke...to the sound of Baby Jean crying...and her mother singing softly, "hush little baby, don't you cry...", soft and sweet as she had sung to her...

A Thread That Runs, Part 1

The rain drops beat loudly on the metal roof of the cabin Nell called home. High atop this peaceful mountain, in the cabin in which she was born, Nell shared life with her mother Irma, grandmother Winona, and her precious Baby Jean. Nell went to school during the day, and in the evening after homework and tending to Baby Jean she would take sewing instruction from her mother and grandmother...both known throughout these hills for their superb craftsmanship.

Nell could hardly think with the din of rain on the tin roof. She was rightly tired and laid down to rest. A few minutes passed and she was fast asleep...

I'd Like To...

The world is not a happy place

We've let the morons rule our space

I'd like to teach the world to sing

A song that has a happy ring

With a chorus to drown what the morons say

A refrain so sweet to brighten the day.

Marking Time

"Katy and I have been married just a bit over a year. We celebrated our first anniversary last Wednesday. I spent a great deal of effort finding just the right traditional and modern anniversary gifts. She was pleased with both. As we celebrated the first of what we hoped would be many milestones, little did we know what we would face in a short few days.

Although the traditional gift for a first anniversary is paper, it is the tall grandfather clock that remains, standing amidst the ruins of our new house. It is marking time, moving forward, much as our marriage must move forward through this setback."

Congratulations to Jenny and all Centusians for our one year anniversary. I am a bit late in posting, as we had been without power for 4 days, as a result of a catastrophic storm system. This historic storm system spawned record numbers of tornadoes in our area, an area that rarely sees such dangerous phenomena. The storm system lasted for over 14 hours. Their were three tornado spawning waves. Many lives were lost. We faired much better than many, with no known damage to life or property. It was nonetheless scary. We sought refuge in the basement three times. We know many people whose lives were affected in dramatic fashion. The photograph I post with this was taken between storm waves from atop Lookout Mtn. at the hang gliding jump off spot. It is a view across Lookout Valley to Sand Mtn. Alabama. We began to see a lightning storm over Sand Mtn. and thought it was time to hurry back home to prepare for "round two". It was this very storm brewing that would spawn the EF-3 tornado which would wreak havoc and claim two lives in the community of Trenton, GA in the valley below.

Lives are forever changed here. We now have a new community mindset as regards tornadoes.