My OperaPATHS....
Wednesday, December 27, 2006 9:20:35 PM
It's December 27th in the 2007th year of our Lord and I'm dangling my legs off an ancient railroad trestle overlooking a sluggish brown creek nestled in Kountze, TX. Years ago, my father, two uncles, and an aunt scampered through these woods to this very spot to fish and swim. During the Civil War, this part of Texas was named "The Big Thicket", and for good reason. The thick, tangled underbrush gave the union army hell as they tried to cut a swath through it. It didn't stop a few generations of children however, as trails were blazed, forts were erected, and fishing trips were carried out daily. It's been years since I've been out here and I have to say I'm a bit dissapointed.
There were no trailheads behind my Granny's house or anywhere else in the neighborhood where their used to be. Perhaps this generation has forgotten the simple pleasure of sitting by a gurgling creek watching a gently bobbing cork dissapear. Have they forgotten the peace of mind brought about by allowing the absorption of the sounds of breeze and bird as they intermingle with kaliedoscopic shadows cascading down through the trees? I guess they would rather camp out in front of a Wal-Mart waiting on the next great gaming system to be released so they can zone out on death and destruction and gorge on genetically modified trans-fat snacky cakes. Three cheers for escalating the technological errosion of the soul of man!
The paths I loved as a child are now overgrown. I had to walk down to the elementary school where I remembered the path grew wide and cut in to find it. It was there, though badly mangled. It seems that machines were the last things to to touch the beautiful trails I walked with my father. Now, they are overgrown and treacherous.
And so goes the paths of life. Once, they were wide and easy going, and it was not uncommon to run into other like minded souls along the way. Now, constricted by mans "progress", they have been forgotten and are seldom used. Convenience has taken the reigns, leaving in its wake hordes of fat, lazy, miserable divorcees.
Those that still embrace the narrow paths of truth that wind through forests of doubt are the same souls that blazed them eons ago. And old souls can still be found out there, searching for one another in the underbrush....
Our paths have gotten complicated over the years and frequently become too narrow to walk together, but we can only keep moving until the path widens. Only then can we hold hands and bask in the suns warm rays....
I just stumbled upon the old railroad line and am not surprised to find that it no longer exists.
It's just a wide easy path of rocks to stroll down. The creek lies ahead, spanned by an old trestle...
New life is springing from the old tracks reminding me that this Old Earth will always reclaim what we leave behind. It's like a gentle mother who continually forgives the transgressions of her wreckless children......I find comfort in that.
I wish you were out here with me love.
It's only a matter of time.
Having faith is easy when you stay true to the path....
Peace,
Dillon[/COLOR][/ALIGN][/FONT]
