going to california

leaving is okay
A temporary leave is okay. An eternal leave is not okay. Something in between is scaled according to the participants. Usually, if you are the one leaving, what is ahead is deemed good. But if you are the one left behind, what lies ahead is not so good. We left Nashville (BNA) airport Wednesday morning for a vacation. Three adult males and, on the higher edge of middle aged, mama. Our first stop was Yosemite National Park.

airport food
I thought about the food the Hanks character in The Terminal ate.  The real person that Tom Hanks portrayed lived for 18 years in the Paris airport. We had to eat as we stopped in Detroit (go figure!) before heading to San Fransisco. Pricey, fast, and non-nutritious is a kind way to describe it. But we had to eat, and it was available. As consumer friendly as airports are, they do not promote healthy choices.

In 'n Out Burgers....yumm...not airport food!

on the way to yosemite
All I can say is now I understand! Even with the traffic the drive was great. Seeing those huge wind turbines was a bizarre sight.  They were lonely looking, isolated. If I clipped from my view all the cars passing in the lanes next to us, I could create a film with a strange landscape. My boys said, “Okay, Mom. We can go home now. I think you’ve seen all you can handle.” 

what yellowstone taught me

what’s good
Top ten good things about yellowstone
admission is minimal
seeing is priceless
everyone is invited
cellphones don’t work
nature is accessible
rules keep people safe
our democracy got something right
snow in May
slow speed limits
earth has control valves
what’s a life lesson
Remember when you were a kid and you heard the ice cream truck coming down the street? First thing I did was calculate how far away this magical truck was from me. Then I decided if I had enough time to run to my house, get money, and make it back to the truck. Lastly, I went for it. For me, going to Yellowstone was a little like that. I heard and listened to my heart say “you gotta go.” Then I calculated the costs, the time, my desire. Finally, I went for it. The experiences of catching the ice cream truck is one of a kind for me, as obviously my trip to Yellowstone. But the life lesson is this: Don’t miss a chance to “go for it.”
what’s worth remembering
Everything is worth remembering. As much as I want my complex memory to retrieve every moment, it will not. Sure, taking photos and notes on my phone will guide me to my Yellowstone memories, but they will never take the place of me after that trip. It is supremely true: you can’t un-see something that you saw. I am not wired to see a rainbow and not think about one at the foot of the Lower Falls, or see any image of a bison and not feel the shock of being close to one, or boil water and not picture one of the thermal pools. How trips affect us is unknown until we return. For me, remembering Yellowstone will often be involuntary and deliberately voluntary. 

last day in yellowstone

virginia cascades
When Yellowstone was mentioned before I visited the park, I never saw pictures of waterfalls in my head. I only visualized spouts of water coming out of the ground. Now, vast spaces, mountain tops with snow, bison, rams, prismatic pools of water, towering pine trees, and waterfalls flash through my mind’s eye. Recalling how I felt with each new vista is one of the best parts of remembering Yellowstone. The overwhelming feeling of gratitude mixed with a deep sense of humility followed by giddiness makes me nod my head in affirmation and smile inward and outward.

the grand canyon of yellowstone
How water designs its own pathway intrigues me. Canyons, falls, gorges, valleys…man cannot compete with any of water’s creations. And what is remarkable is that water provides many things now. For example, seeing a rainbow because of rain or falling water is just pleasurable. Who doesn’t like a rainbow?

lake yellowstone hotel
Just when I thought I’d seen it all, the park surprised me one last time. Lake Yellowstone Hotel sits on the edge of the park’s namesake lake. To celebrate a 2015 National Historic Landmark designation and it’s 125th birthday, this Greek Revival beauty is showing off its recent renovations. The original architect knew something about location, location, location. The massive lobby and dining room provide astounding views of the lake.

outside yellowstone

earthquake lake
My friend’s sister/guide believes she would like to be in the Yellowstone caldera, place where the geothermal activity is concentrated in the park, when the next, inevitable eruption occurs. Her theory is that the catastrophic change to Earth will create a miserable existence for those left to die slowly. People camping along Hebgen Lake in 1959 did not have a chance to think about where they wanted to be at the time of a Yellowstone disaster--an earthquake that measured 7.3. Killing 19 people and creating a engineering nightmare, the Hebgen Lake event was the largest and most damaging earthquake, which are common in the park. Several occur daily, but they are too small to be felt.
virginia city
I dubbed this small town “the Williamsburg of the West.” The entire place is a museum. Rustic, authentic, and full of local stories. Hearing about the hanging of Clubfoot George (and seeing his foot!) cruising the sidewalks of the main street, and walking a dirt, rock side street, I was transported to the time of pioneers, cowboys, and saloons. Juxtaposed to the natural history of the park, this place added another perspective of life before Yellowstone.

big horned sheep
Nothing is more thrilling to a Yellowstone Park visitor than being close to wildlife. My moment came outside the park, but close enough to know wildlife is safe wherever they are in the region. Living in a place where squirrel, deer, and skunk are commonplace and seen lying dead on the side of the road, I do not value urban wildlife as I did in Yellowstone. Maybe it’s because deer and such are numerous, maybe it’s because life in the city is fast, or maybe it’s because humans have detached themselves from the natural world, but I am certain I believe the wildlife of national parks is more important than the wildlife I view everyday.