Jul. 12, 2002 - 21:20 MDT

THE WONDERING JEW

Advantages

I'm in a funny mood tonight, neither sad nor especially glad. Mellow in a bittersweet way I guess. What put me into this frame of mind maybe is thinking a little about a burned over land which might get far worse before it heals and regrows.

To allow me to wax philosophical, I hunted up an entry by Stephanie of Yer Blues she made on June 11. It caught my eye immediately, then, when I read the words of her notify as I could hear the voice and music of John Denver in my head and heart.

She wrote, "John Denver wrote this song for Annie."

You fill up my senses,

like a night in a forest.

Like the mountains in Springtime,

like a walk in the rain.

Like a storm in the desert,

Like a sleepy blue ocean.

You fill up my senses, come fill me again.

Excuse me please, non-friend of John Denver for going into this. To me he spoke my soul and heart. He sang the very way I feel. His born name was something like Deutchendorf, his daddy I think a veteran of our Air Force who put his family in the Denver Area. But he called himself John Denver and obviously loved our West, places rural and oceans pacific, and took me down those country roads.

As I went back to Stephanie's entry note, read the words, I remembered and almost physically sensed the low song of the scented breeze blowing through the pines, the caress of my face by those lovely zephyrs.

I remembered the feel and scent of the mountains right after a summer rain. A freshly washed world, clean as if no man had ever hurt another. The frequent afternoon shower, seeing the clouds moving into the area, giving me and the earth a drink and moving on toward the plains.

Startled I would be by the noise of a frightened animal scampering away from hated man, but understanding and loving it and its lust for life.

I love the bushes and plants up there, the occasional Indian Paint Brush flowers growing along the road, a Columbine and a few other blooms. The low lying evergreens which add to the mountain decor.

Comes again to my mind the long vistas of unsettled land, whether from mountainside or valley, the beauty that is everywhere. A constanly changing picture as daybreak is followed by midday, dusk and then a night time canopy of twinkling stars.

It consoles me that there are yet forested areas in Colorado that can still fill us again.

Then I think of how thankful I am of people's innate kindness. Being old, bent and obviously fragile I am glad to smile and accept small kindnesses with a smile and a, "Thank You," as I go by. Some things are done for me that I am quite capable of doing for myself, yet I treasure the sympathy of one for another. I clumsily fell over my own feet the other day in a public setting and was totally amazed by the many kind people who rushed over to see if they could help.

I notice nowadays that as I walk, the folks coming toward me are often smiling, it seems as if it is directed my way. Am I facing the world with a smile ? I guess, it is often said you get in return what you give.

My memory stretches back a bit too. I retired at age 69, wasn't as creaky then as now but even then I noticed the happy kindness shown to all by most of the people with whom I worked.

As much as I rave and rant about present things I am truly thankful to live in this country, with these people who surround us.

So I suppose that even with the troubles we have, living here has its supreme Advantages . . . . . . . . .

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