SPOKANE MOTTO

 

May all of us be blessed…

every child, 

every woman 

every man….

to live a life with a motto like the city of Spokane.

It’s a beautifully simple motto…

but it’s meaning is so powerful and strong…

The motto of this city:

In Spokane we all belong

GNRT DAY 9 CHILDREN OF TEH SUN

 

 We spent the day in Spokane…by the way it rhymes with man

Now that I’ve cleared up that pronunciation mystery….

how about I take a moment for a little history.

Spokane was named for the Spokane tribe

who long before the settlers came…across this land did run

The name Spokane carries with it a great significance 

It means ‘Children of the sun.”

With that in our minds and the sun shining brightly we were feeling blessed 

that we happened upon Spokane the same weekend as Hoopfest.

Hoopfest is a 3 on 3 basketball tournament…and for what it’s worth

It’s billed as the largest tournament of its kind anywhere on Earth

24,000 players come from 44 states and 6 countries 

every age, sex, size and ability level you’d ever want to.meet

and Deborah and I spent half the morning watching them compete.

It was also the 50th anniversary of Spokane’s environmentally themed Expo 74 

Which was a huge success from May until November that year

when it bid the world farewell

to celebrate we ate key lime pie…and rode an old wooden carousel  

We walked around the city watching people large and small

enjoying everything Spokane had to offer…including her waterfalls.

We celebrated the city, basketball as well as a 50 year old Expo….

It was a day filled with surprises, wonder and fun…

for two blessed and happy 70 year old…children of the sun.

GUARDIAN ANGELS

 

May we be blessed to take life slowly…to relax…

Let me tell you why…

It’s never a good idea to move faster 

than your guardian angel can fly.

GNRT DAY 8 ANGELS

 

For days I’ve been writing poems about our travels…let me now explain…

We’re on the Great Northern Road trip

driving US Highway 2 from Washington all the way to Maine.

We’ll be veering off heading to Glacier and Banff… 

and other parts of Canada…where our passports are required

)We’d like to use them at least once…before they both expire).

The next phase of our Great Northern Road Trip

part of this 48 day span…was a 230 mile journey 

from the town of Skykomish to the city of Spokane.

When we left that morning the rain from yesterday

hadn’t finished falling yet…

and we wondered if every one of these 230 miles would be cold and wet.

As we drove over the Cascade mountains

we hadn’t traveled very far…

when clouds descended from the mountain top and gently caressed our car

From that moment on clouds of every size and shape happily caught our eye

as they playfully shared the heavens with the sun and the deep blue sky.

They were with us through the Alpine forests…and didn’t miss a beat 

as they joined us in the valley where the apples grow 

and through golden fields of wheat.

And whenever we stopped to take in the beauty

far from the maddening crowds…

every time we looked up..we were greeted by the clouds.

About halfway through the drive…I had this feeling…strong!

that they weren’t clouds at all…

but angels sent to watch over us as wee drove along.

One cloud gave herself away…after I’d been watching her a while

when I’m sure I saw her wink…followed by a smile.

When we finally reached Spokane…

I looked up and thanked all those angels for helping us find our way

And told them if they’re not busy

we’ll be on this Great Northern Road trip….for at least 40 more days.

BLESSED TO TALK TO CHILDREN AND ANIMALS

 

May we be blessed to talk to children as if they understand us…

And while we’re at it… animals too…

For we will often be pleasantly surprised

when we realize they actually do.

MARMOT TEXT

 

Today was a travel day and as we rode another ferry across the Puget Sound 

anticipating what adventure would come next

my reverie was interrupted when on my phone…I received a text.

The text is one I think I shall forever keep upon my fridge.

It was from the woodchuck Deborah and I met in Olympic Park

while up on Hurricane Ridge.

She let me know she finds the word woodchuck offensive 

how anger in her it spurs…

and in any future poems about her…she texted…it’s marmot she prefers.

I texted her right back apologizing for using woodchuck as her name

Informing her I have always thought they were both the same.

She agreed but said she, as a marmot, has her pride…

and she feels using marmot instead of woodchuck is much more dignified.

When I asked her why she said with the name marmot…she feels more at home

because she connects the name woodchuck with that old god-awful poem.

You know the poem she said…the one that makes fun of my livelihood…

How much wood could a woodchuck chuck…if a woodchuck could chuck wood.

And then that angry little marmot in her text when on to say 

No one ever asks how much wood could a marmot chuck…and I prefer it that way.

Again, I apologized for my faux pas, told her I’d write a retraction and then 

I let her know that I will never make that same mistake again.

When we were finished I admit for a moment I found this all perplexing

to think that for the last few minutes…with a marmot I was texting.

I assumed that if I asked the marmot how she could text so good…

She would smile and tell me how a woodchuck could not text

but how a marmot could.

TO GIVE HER EYES A REST

 

When I first asked her why she stops every now and then to close her eyes

on any walk we take in nature….

with her original answer I am still impressed.

She said,

“When I see all the beauty that surrounds me… 

sometimes I have to give my eyes a rest.

GNRT DAY 6 HOW RAINFOREST

 

Today’s trip was to the Hoh Rainforest! 

To say it was 30 miles away would be right and it would be wrong

because the only road to get there…is 90 miles long.

In no way when I say this am I wanting to complain

because not only did we take a beautiful ride in the country…

but we were ready for the rain.

The Hoh rainforest gets its name from the Hoh River

which was given that name by the leaders of the Quinault tribe.

The exact meaning of Hoh is lost…having never been transcribed

The river and the rainforest are still sacred to the Quinault people…

It’s where their children grow…and where their ancestors grew. 

Which means we needed to do everything in our power

to respect the river and rainforest too.

Which was easy to do when we saw the beauty and diversity of this rainforest

spread out before us on the grandest scale…

So we walked as gently as we could along the paths of her Halls of Mosses trail.

Over crystal clear salmon streams we strolled…totally enthralled

past trees that have been here for centuries…rising 200 and more feet tall.

Many of the trees are blanketed in mosses…each one seems perfectly fitted

It’s like they’re covered in a variety of green sweaters 

their tree grandma’s have knitted

Our hike went by the Hoh river…and as we stood together on the shore

we were serenaded by a host of birds we’ve never heard before.

We walked by thousands of new ferns…just beginning to unfurl

along the way we met a banana slug, a winter wren and a Douglas squirrel.

A misty rain began to fall…which made us smile as we walked along the lane…

after all what would a walk through a rainforest be if we didn’t have any rain.

Any walk in nature…like today’s short rainforest stroll…

has a way of rejuvenating the heart as well as stimulating the soul…

So before we left we stopped to think about the Quinalut people

and thank this place where they choose to have their children grow…

having walked in their ancestors footsteps

we understand why they love it so.

BLESSED TO MAKE TIME FOR THINGS WITHIN OUR REACH

 

May we be blessed in life

from its beginning to its end

to make more time for family

to make more time for friends

To make more time tor things

that are totally within our reach…

for strolls among the trees…

for listening to the birds

and 

for long walks along the beach