Open Air

Take a look at where I am at. The picture below shows it visually, but it's up to anyone who cares to let those 1000 words fall into place to tell the story. It's perfect here, for the most part. This is where I imagine that people are imagining they are when they need to escape from somewhere else. Or they're thinking about a similar place. It's nice to be just a little bit removed from the "outside world," where mail, news, and travel take a little more time to get here. The extra time helps one take it all in. The only time that overwhelming feeling sets in up here is at the top of a mountain and one realizes just how big this world really is.

As I sat staring out over the Skagway River Valley, I began to wonder if my imagination was getting robbed. Here I was looking at a place that billions of people could only imagine and I am experiencing it first hand. It was only a fleeting thought. Soon I saw myself standing on the highest peak, or jumping from tree limb to tree limb, or getting chased by a bear through the woods. And with those visual images in my mind came all different feelings: wonder, excitement, fear... It felt good to have those senses stimulated for a moment.

So, it's good to be familiar with such an unfamiliar place. Come fall, I'll be ready to be home, but I know I am where I need to be for now. The view, the friends, and the money are all good. I wish everyone could experience Skagway, Alaska. But then if everyone were hear it wouldn't be the same. Let me spark your imagination for a minute.