Tails from the Rail: Nature
Tails from The Rail: Nature
I’ve stopped trying to take photos as the frustration of capturing with my phone the beauty before me is interrupting the amazing views before me. The english language wasn’t created to express adequetly what’s in front of me. Or perhaps in an age of man made wonders our greatest blunder is we simple don’t excercise our usage of such.
So I give in. My man made tech is even telling me to take a break via the “No Service” in the upper left corner where the more familiar bars of service I usually fixate on and often pray for more of is no more.
This is of course a blessing for a tech tied type like myself who has bought hook, line, and sinker the need for connection. So much so my connection to nature is as severed as my cell service. The tables have indeed been turned and my heart is telling me for the better. I’m relaxed. Calm. Very very calm. With it brings a different kind of happiness than what I’m used to. I dare say better. More natural than the burts of joy a ringing for or ping of a new text message.
No, I’m being freed up to just enjoy the scenary. Mountains streams roaring down the valleys/canyons betwee the peaks i’m slowly climbing higher up into. Massive walls of granite and red rock. Snow covered peaks. And big blue skies.
This is the America that inspired “America The Beautiful” no doubt.
Ferris Bueller was right? Life moves pretty fast and if we don’t stop and look around we might miss it. I’m feeling like riding the train is makiing up for all those times I didn’t. Theose times I choose to work late, work earlier, work the weekends with the hope to make more of somethinf who’s value is relative to your sense of importance of it. Years ago I was in Prague with a friend of the family who was like a mentor to me, Bud Baechler. I remember telling him I wanted to make a lot of money one day. Bud simply replied with a smile as we gazed out of this tower that overlooked Prague and said, “Money is just a tool. It’s how You and I are having this expeience right now. It bought our drinks last night while we had great converation. It’s enabling us do to do & learn. That’s all it is.”
You know it’s funny. As much as I’ve quoted Bud on that I often forget. One of my favorire line of a song by Social Distortion is “The Best things in life aren’t things”. I love to quote that one too. But I guess that’s what we’re taught to do in the man made world. It’s no one’s fault really, just our own desire to be heard and the brief bit of wisdom we get a rush from quoting such great words. It’s not that the words don’t mean something, we’re just living in a world that doesn’t allow us to truly take them in. A quick fix. In all fairness, we rarely stop to take anything in except for more stimulation from our phones, our cars, our TV’s, advertising, and each other. Usually all at once.
That all said, you’d think that such training in sensory overload would prepare me for this trip. But at just a bit over 90 min in I’m feeling a bit overwhelemed with all there is to see. I could stare out the window for hours I feel, which is good as there are 32+ hours left on this journey.
Words truly can’t describe what all you see out here in full. At least I don’t fee equipped to properly convey at the moment the experience, and I studied English lit/writing in college. Maybe had girls & beer not sidetracked me more my vocabulary would be better equipped to describe what’s out my window. Though I suspect I’d sadly have forgotten such training anyway as the distractions of the man made world took hold, and my love of girls drove me for a love to drink which has helped me meet many a fascinating person in my time. This train has a bar on it somewhere, and I’m guessing anyone willing to embark on a train ride has to be rather interesting.
Train has started again. Time to go through the Moffat Tunnel. I should start staring out the window again.
Listening to: “In Between Days” by The Cure
