Meditating on Mammoth LakesJuly 14th, 2010
REMEMBERING MAMMOTH LAKES
- a meditiation by the runningrev -
On a beautiful sunny morning, the intrepid wanderer set off to explore the wounderful Mammoth Lakes. They are a series of lakes that reward the walking wanderer with visions of Nature's beauty as you make the climb up to an elevation of almost, but not quite 9,000 feet. The air is thin and the going pretty slow as the wanderer makes his way up the mountain. Its more of a walk, rather than a hike, as most of it is alongside the highway, which narrows considerably once you leave the paved streets of Mammoth, known for its great skiing in winter and challenging hikes in the heat of summer. The pictures really don't convey the awesome sights.
Pretty soon the condo's and the community of Mammoth is left behind,
as the wanderer sets of on a journey that proves to be one of a kind.
The winding road begins to rise with great rocks on my left and right
and pretty soon the wanderer is out in the wilderness - and what a sight!
As the wanderer walks now sees a marker marking the old Mammoth City
One wonders how they survived back then - but they sure don't need my pity.
The first reward soon unfolded before me - after walking more than a hour
Its Mary's Lake - and suddenly you can see waters and mountains .... afar!
The elevation is pretty high, and even walking slowly breathing ain't easy,
Glad that running all these years means means the wanderer won't get queazy.
There are a lot more lakes all around - the beauty of nature abounds.
In the silence of nature and birds singing are the only sounds.
The next feast for the eyes unfolds before me - Twin Lakes right there,
Once the again the spectecular beauty fills the thinness of the air.
The picture really doesn't do justice to the magnificence of the view,
everywhere you look, there's more beauty, it just makes you go 'whew!"
Now the wanderer has been three hours on the road, time to lighten the load,
So stopping at the Horseshoe Lake - tis time for lunch and to partake.
Horseshoe Lake is kind of a funny place - it appears that all around is dead,
And so the wanderer, quite hungry, decides this isn't the place to break bread.
Reading the notices at Horseshoe Lake, and realizing the thinness of the air,
I decided perhaps better get rid of my food before meeting a hungry bear.
So I found a place called McLeod Lake, had another half mile climb,
but boy, was it worth it .... and what a beautiful spot the wanderer did find.
After a four hour walk, and the air getting thin,
before lunch, I decided to go for a swim.
I was the only one there, the whole lake was mine,
so I decided to skinny dip, just this one time.
No sooner in the water, I heard the sound of voices.
so I scrambled out, my old tired bones rejoices!
Before they arrived on the scene, there I was all relaxed and clean,
with a great big smile - but you only know what the wanderer means.
After some lunch and having a good rest, set off to return back
but going back - meant going down, and with a lighter knapsack.
The road was downhill all the way, and the wanderer though walking
said to himself its quicker running, to himself the wanderer is always talking!
I made a few side trips on the way down - so take a closer look,
And Twin lakes was a resort area - with two lakes fed by a brook
that as it came over the mountain tall became a magificent waterfall.
The next place to explore was called Panorama Dome - incredible I say!
the view from here was aswesome and a place to spend the rest of the day,
Words alone can not express or explain the view, as the thin air fills noses,
But the silence, solitude, peace and tranquility - gave me a sense of old Moses.
The eye, when it opens, is like the dawn breaking in the night. When it opens a new world is there. The eye is also the mother of distance. When the eye opens, it shows that the world and others are outside us, distant from us ........
........ When you really look deeply at something, it becomes a part of you. This is one of the sinister aspects of television. People are constantly looking at empty and false images; these impoverished images are filling up the inner world of the heart ......
....... televison and the computer world are great empty shadowlands. To look at something that can gaze back at you, or that has a reserve and depth, can heal your eyes and deepen your sense of vision.
To the fearful eye .... all is threatening.
To the greedy eye .... everything can be possessed.
To the judgemental eye .... everything is closed in definitive frames.
To the Resentful eye .... everything is begrudged.
To the indifferent eye ... nothing calls or awakens.
To the inferior eye ... everyone else is greater.
To the loving eye ... everything is real.
Love is the light in which we see each thing in its true origin, nature and destiny. If we cold look at the world in a loving way, then the world would rise up before us full of invitation, possibility and depth.
The loving eye can even coax pain, hurt and violence towards transfiguration and renewal.
Now the day is just about done, so I decided instead of walking, I'd run,
Spending amost eight hours of walking up the mountain, it really was fun,
I'm thankful for my health, and another day of enjoying the sun.
Why even on those days when it rains, let me quickly explain,
Every day on the earth is always a day we gain.
The day on Mammoth Mountain was a day spent alone,
But when it was all over I was glad to be home.
After a beer and a great home cooked meal,
it came to me that a nap would seal the deal!
Blessings,
the running rev!
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The photos are part of my Sabbatical that took me to Ireland and to California,
THE END.