Lost...on a painted sky...
...where the clouds are hung for the poet's eye.
This has always been one of my favorite opening lines to a song, but never did it seem more fitting than the last two days. Even as I've suffered through the head cold of death, more than once I've found myself in awe of the beauty laid before me.
After a cap bust day in the Dakotas, we headed out of Aberdeen for the South Dakota Badlands and Mount Rushmore. I can't even describe the sight. I don't have the words. I walked out to the tip of a point along the "Badlands Wall," and just drank in the beauty of what I was viewing. Mount Rushmore, even though it was raining and cold (shorts were a bad idea), was impressive as well. The Black Hills are incredibly gorgeous. I especially enjoyed the herds of buffalo and deer that crossed the roads in front of us, although it slowed our progress towards Hot Springs, SD.
Apparently no one eats after 10 pm in Hot Springs, so we drove 30 miles to Edgemont for truck stop diner food, which actually was pretty good, and didn't kill me as I thought it would.
After a fitful night's sleep due to hacking and coughing, and just the general discomfort of the room, we headed out of South Dakota and through the Nebraska Sand Hills. Again, I can't even begin to describe how gorgeous our surroundings were.
We stopped for sunset at Lake McConaughy in Ogallala, and now we're heading towards Fort Morgan, CO for the night. Tomorrow I return to reality, vicious cold and all.
In any case, it has been a tremendous experience. I can't wait to view the pictures over and over and remember the incredible places I've been over the last ten days.
I listened to this song tonight as I stood above the lake, watching the last vestiges of daylight slide below the horizon. The beauty was almost too much to bear. It was the kind of vision that haunts the dreams of old men as they yearn for their long spent youth.
"Be"
Neil Diamond
Lost
On a painted sky
Where the clouds are hung
For the poets eye
You may find him
If you may find him
There
On a distant shore
By the wings of dreams
Through an open door
You may know him
If you may
Be
As a page that aches for a word
Which speaks on a theme that is timeless
While the sun God will make for your day
Sing
As a song in search of a voice that is silent
And the one God will make for your way
And we danced
To a whispered voice
Overheard by the soul
Undertook by the heart
And you may know it
If you may know it
While the sand
Would become the stone
Which begat the spark
Turned to living bone
Holy, holy
Sanctus, sanctus
Be
As a page that aches for a word
Which speaks on a theme that is timeless
While the sun God will make for your day
Sing
As a song in search of a voice that is silent
And the one God will make for your day
This has always been one of my favorite opening lines to a song, but never did it seem more fitting than the last two days. Even as I've suffered through the head cold of death, more than once I've found myself in awe of the beauty laid before me.
After a cap bust day in the Dakotas, we headed out of Aberdeen for the South Dakota Badlands and Mount Rushmore. I can't even describe the sight. I don't have the words. I walked out to the tip of a point along the "Badlands Wall," and just drank in the beauty of what I was viewing. Mount Rushmore, even though it was raining and cold (shorts were a bad idea), was impressive as well. The Black Hills are incredibly gorgeous. I especially enjoyed the herds of buffalo and deer that crossed the roads in front of us, although it slowed our progress towards Hot Springs, SD.
Apparently no one eats after 10 pm in Hot Springs, so we drove 30 miles to Edgemont for truck stop diner food, which actually was pretty good, and didn't kill me as I thought it would.
After a fitful night's sleep due to hacking and coughing, and just the general discomfort of the room, we headed out of South Dakota and through the Nebraska Sand Hills. Again, I can't even begin to describe how gorgeous our surroundings were.
We stopped for sunset at Lake McConaughy in Ogallala, and now we're heading towards Fort Morgan, CO for the night. Tomorrow I return to reality, vicious cold and all.
In any case, it has been a tremendous experience. I can't wait to view the pictures over and over and remember the incredible places I've been over the last ten days.
I listened to this song tonight as I stood above the lake, watching the last vestiges of daylight slide below the horizon. The beauty was almost too much to bear. It was the kind of vision that haunts the dreams of old men as they yearn for their long spent youth.
"Be"
Neil Diamond
Lost
On a painted sky
Where the clouds are hung
For the poets eye
You may find him
If you may find him
There
On a distant shore
By the wings of dreams
Through an open door
You may know him
If you may
Be
As a page that aches for a word
Which speaks on a theme that is timeless
While the sun God will make for your day
Sing
As a song in search of a voice that is silent
And the one God will make for your way
And we danced
To a whispered voice
Overheard by the soul
Undertook by the heart
And you may know it
If you may know it
While the sand
Would become the stone
Which begat the spark
Turned to living bone
Holy, holy
Sanctus, sanctus
Be
As a page that aches for a word
Which speaks on a theme that is timeless
While the sun God will make for your day
Sing
As a song in search of a voice that is silent
And the one God will make for your day