“At night the fog was thick and full of light, and sometimes voices.”
~ from ‘Plain Kate’ by Erin Bow
Sunday Muse
Tag: Allegheny mountains
Sunday Muse
“Old Grandfather Winter slowly walks across the land.
He knows that spring will soon be here.
Climbing the mountains to his palace of ice,
he turns to watch the snow’s melting behind him.”
excerpted from “When the Root Children Wake Up” by Audrey Wood
Sunday Muse
From “Hope and Contraditions in Appalachia” by Travis Stimeling, West Virginia native and associate professor of music history at West Virginia University. In the quote below he is referring to J. D. Vance, author of ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ and Elizabeth Catte author of ‘What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia’.
“My Appalachia is an Appalachia of contradictions. But unlike Vance’s desolate and hopeless Appalachia, my Appalachia is, like Catte’s, a hopeful one. It’s one in which people still check in on their neighbors and gather together to share a few songs, regardless of their faith, politics, race, or class. It’s one in which I, as a straight white man, can stand proudly in solidarity with my queer neighbors to demand equal treatment under the law and learn more about how to support other people’s life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness through compassionate listening and deliberate action. It’s one where cutting-edge scientific research is conducted every day and where future technologies and traditional folkways both provide guidance toward a bright tomorrow.”
Please take a minute to read “Hope and Contraditions in Appalachia” in its entirety. Our wish is that it will give you, as it did us, a renewed sense of hope in the future of West Virginia and the Appalachian region. Elizabeth Catte is challenging our people to take control of the narrative about Appalachia, to counter negativity with our own stories. Travis Stimeling has inspired us to join in and share more about our home among the hills. #MyAppalachia
Misty Mountain Mornings
“Oh, those West Virginia Hills!”
We never tire of your beauty and inspiration, especially on these misty, mountain mornings as the fog slowly burns off and you appear in the distance.
Weekend Blues
What a blessing to be surrounded by these blue skies! Most of the weekend was filled with the most beautiful February weather, and although it began to snow again Sunday afternoon, the air was filled with hope. Because, you see, there were ROBINS! Not just one lonely, lost, what-am-i-doing-so-far-north robin, but dozens and dozens of ROBINS! They were busy as can be in the hayfields and pastures.
So… we’re calling it. It is officially Late Winter! Late Winter! (Please don’t tell us any different.)
Sunday Muse
“Come Fairies, take me out of this dull world,
for I would ride with you upon the wind
and dance upon the mountains like a flame!”
~ William Butler Yeats
Cool Summer Mornings
Morning greetings from our misty mountains!
We’re feeling blessed by these cool, late summer mornings.
joining The View From Right Here for Weekly Top Shot