Monday, October 04, 2004

Charting ones course

Walking along a wooded path is a lot of fun. Hearing the crunch of the leaves in the forest and smelling the scent of the fall air in the forest is invigorating. The path is very uneven and can be a challenge to travel along it with its unevenness and a rough terrain. Usually, not much of a vista can be seen in a forest since the path in front is far ahead and much can be tough to see.
Many literary references reflect on the path. There is the path not taken or the path referrred to Robert Frost's poetry. and Jesus mentions much about the paths we take in life.
The narrow path in scripture is almost like that of walking in a forest where one has to be careful in how he walks. Branches can be in the way and the bogs in the forest can make it squishy walking, too. But following a good well trampled path that leads to a great view is an outstanding way to spend an afternoon in Maine=coming to a clearing in the forest and seeing the expanse of the beach in front of you after 10 minutes in the woods.

The earth dances

Much of indian mythology and tradition centers around the superstitions of the earth. Imagine an early indian experiencing the kind of catastrophic events that we are currently experiencing with the hurricanes in Florida, the eruptions of Mount St. Helens and the flooding in other parts of the world. It would be unsettling to him as he would not have a scientific basis on which to base it. But his culture has adapted the dance as a way to explain the rythym of what is going on.
The culture of the indian is very colorful wherever one goes. As they use the dyes of plants in their artwork, they appreciate the land of which they are from. It has been a struggle to make a decent living but I appreciate the hard work that they do. I am sure that if an indian was to face the type of weather events that our people on earth have experienced, the artwork would have reflected it well.
Let the rythymn of the earth continue on.