Moving Toward a New Life

This is my last morning on Upper Whitefish, here on this bank overlooking the lake, where I've been staying for the past few weeks. I will miss going to sleep with the song of the loon, getting up in time to greet the morning sun as it slowly rises on the horizon, changing the colors of the sky as it does so. I was thinking about all the changes that lie ahead of me, the return to a way of life that I grew up with, but put aside for several years while living in Santa Fe, and since, as I looked at the possibilities. A few weeks ago, I bought a refrigerator magnet that summed up my feelings about my return to Minnesota. It said, "Sometimes 'right back where you started from,' is right where you belong." 

I will be sleeping in my new home tomorrow night and waking up to a new way of life. One of the things that I am particularly happy about is that my land includes 147 feet of riverfront. The Pine winds along, just across the road, my place right on an elbow of the river. The former owner created steps leading down to a nice spot beside it with a fire pit. I plan to make this my little sanctuary, a place of respite. The river flows down to where Upper and Lower Whitefish join together. I love knowing that all the beauty, all the goodness that Whitefish holds, is only a short canoe trip away. I won't be leaving this behind, I will still feel its heartbeat, the island.

I didn't want to leave here without expressing my gratitude for having such a wonderful place to be for awhile, this piece of Earth that is now part of my consciousness. For whatever reason, an Alison Krauss song kept running through my mind early this morning as I stood outside and watched the growing daylight move across the water, and so I decided to post it as my way of paying homage to this time. I suppose it was all that thought about heartbeats as I looked out on the island. It was written and first recorded by Don Williams, many years ago, but Alison, who has the voice of an angel, and John Waite, a perfect match for her, have re-created this beautiful song. It just seemed to fit somehow.

P.S. Just as I  posted this, I looked up and saw a bald eagle flying over the water along the bank, right outside my door.

Here's "Lay Down Beside Me"