On The Road

These past five days, I spent time away from home, doing so much traveling.

I arrived in Florence around 5pm Thursday. After a lively dinner with the family I spend a lot of time with up there, Tommy and I went off to Charlotte licketty split, to a party. It wasn't too great, but I talked with some people and others I haven't ran into for a good while. At the party we met up with a guy from Hendersonville, Norm was his name. We took him back to Florence to hang with all of the gang for the weekend. The ride home was sleepy, but filled with chatter. Norm and I talked much music. We got home at 4am and sleep that night was awful and unsatisfying, to both me and Norm. Tommy always wakes up before the crack of dawn and he was off to a fast start, while I crawled out of bed at almost noontime and there was breakfast left for me on the table, which was right decent of the dad, Al, and I scarfed it up. The whole day was spent with the regular Florence gang -- plus Norm of course. He is a real hoot and makes Suzie laugh more than she already does -- and the gal Suzie had her boyfriend Bill along. We went a small distance out of the town to visit the site of an atom bomb dropping, but not going off. We went to the mexican restaurant. Everything was delicious. Everything seems more delicious away from home. It was a boring day, but it was spent with friends and it was good seeing all of them, and I'd soon be very joyful to see all of them, because we'd spend a lot more time together that weekend. The next day, I woke up a bit earlier the next day, which was Saturday, and Tommy and I traveled with some guys from our church to Columbia for religious work. It refreshed the day and made me think about God. The rest of that afternoon was mostly spent alone. I wanted to go out for a drive in my car. It always happens the third day. I brought a few people along, Norm and Tommy's brother, Carl. We drove to the Darlington raceway. it was big. I thought it was small, but it was as big as any racetrack you see on Nascar television. The dusk was yellow then red and dull. We drove back to the mall before going back home, meeting up with Suzie and Bill. It was wonderful seeing them again, they are good to each other. We all had our kicks at the mall, and left without getting asked out this one store. We usually travel all together. Its a shame we didn't this time, or at least not yet. Hendersonville was next. We had to take Norm back home. We were going to go in Tommy's car until the last minute, but decided to go in Carl's four-by-four. It was a fun trip. We fit all three of us into his two-seater truck and drove all the way up to Hendersonville. Snow from three weeks ago was still on the ground, hard as a rock. We got stuck; Carl's truck had a small leak in it. We somehow found Norm's house after Carl was actually worried that we weren't going to find it and freeze to death overnight. It was a nice house and Carl and I really opened and talked great things of the soul, and important things. Everything important maybe. Sleep was refreshing on those leather seats, and the morning was brisk and beautiful. I wandered out, my joyful self, into the twenty-degree weather in a teeshirt and corduroys. We got the truck fixed, and because we both missed work that day on account of the breakdown, we had nowhere to go and decided to go dig Asheville. The snow-clouded mountains in the distance with the dusk hanging red and dull was everywhere. Things were all right. It began to snow, we enjoyed it. The town sparkled. I wanted to visit a wonderful family I often stay with. They were way up the mountainside just out of town. The snow got heavier and powder drifted back and forth on the pavement. Carl, from Logan, Utah, was familiar with the snow. When we got there, only the mother and the younger kids were there. Julie, the older sister, had left back for Utah for college a few days ago, and Sam, the younger sister, had left that morning. The oldest brother, Chris had just left and we caught up with him and rode around in his car looking for a car part to allow the heater to work in Carl's truck. It was very cold to him. The snow let up a little bit, or was probably just lighter down on the main road, and we walked into stores, me with those same pants and teeshirt, but with Chris's scarf on. After driving back up to their house and not being able to find parts to that old boat or fix the heater system, we got ready for a bit of a cold, four-hour ride back. We said goodbye to the family and the snow was majestic and getting heavier. The ride out was excellent and full of energy, but it got dark and there wasn't much to see. Before we crossed the NC/SC border, the winter trees fell away to the right and lights from hundreds of towns and thousands of homes burst in front of us, shining lonely and still a thousand or so feet below and miles away. It was all downhill from here. Carl hauled that boat seventy-five miles an hour down a more-than-eight-degree grade until we landed in South Carolina. We talked and listened to a lot of bluegrass like Ricky Skaggs. We got home quite late and ended up reading the bible before heading to bed. I woke up unrefreshed the next morning, and nobody was really in the house except Tommy and Carl. It was time to go home. The drive was sunny and chilly. I road with the windows down until an hour before dark. I took a stop at the Santee Wildlife Refuge and walked along the lake shore. I got home and ate a lot then took it easy

Now I scratched out the following on my note pad while in Asheville. When things demand my attention and speak to me without words, it just becomes me and the landscape. No we, just me:

"We drove up to Asheville. The snow was falling. It was neat. The cold made me wild and bold. We finally found the Riceville Road. Nickel Creek [was playing in the truck like a lullaby]. We really took it slow up in these high hills, the snow began to fall more. I felt so blessed [and was filled with near-overwhelming gratitude]. There's something about these mountains. As we drove alongside downtown, the snow still fell, like flakes from heaven being lightly shaken down. The white benevolent light from the highway street lamps bathed the interstate. It was all so beautiful. The light and white left me making love-nature metaphors. So much light"

Meandering through downtown Asheville, I saw the mountains off in the distance at dusk, one higher hill behind another behind another, and the day's last sun rays leaking through. The snow clouds lended a mystic air to all the light, as if the whole world should stand still in wait of something great and terrible. Intense and gentle beauty. It was the most beautiful image I shall ever see in these, Heaven's hills.

-------------------------------------------------------------
I know I talked a bit about music in today's (well, I would have liked to post all of this Monday when it happened) post. A few songs I want to put out there:

Nickel Creek - Out Of The Woods
Nickel Creek - The Hand Song
Ricky Skaggs - Sally Jo

I want to share a lyric from Out Of The Woods. Again with the making a nature lyric from one of love:

Time out of mind must be heavenly
It's all enchanted and wild
Just like my heart said it was gonna be