Wholly Familiar and Totally Foreign
Wednesday, June 26, 2024
I recently returned from a West Coast trip with my husband and middle daughter. She’s been serving in Seattle since August 2023, so we met her there and drove south to San Jose with stops in Portland, Klamath, Fort Bragg and San Francisco along the way. There was a lot of driving (much of it on winding roads), a lot of laughing and a massive amount of beauty.
When I visited my daughter in Seattle back in April, I was struck by how lush everything was. I grew up on the Gulf Coast and Seattle reminds me so much of my first hometown. Ferns, azaleas and rhododendrons run rampant, even if the air isn’t hot and humid like southern Alabama. That same lushness was evident during our hike at Mt. Rainier. We marveled at how green everything was, at how large the trees were and how clear the water was.
That first hike was beautiful, but felt like an amped up version of hikes I’ve taken right here in Nashville at Warner Parks. Not so when we hit Northern California. As we drove along between Grants Pass and Hiouchi on 199, we turned a corner and saw our first redwood. We all gasped aloud.
Several friends had told us prior to our trip that it wasn’t really possible to describe seeing redwoods, so we were prepared — as much as you can be prepared for something indescribable.
We pulled over that evening to take a closer look and I did something I would do often for the next twenty-four hours: I placed my hand on the tree and talked to it. I rarely spoke aloud to the trees, but I kept thinking of what a good job they were doing at being trees. I was grateful for the reminder they gave that they have been in their particular spot in the ground since long before I was born and they will be there when I’m gone. I expressed my gratitude to them by just saying a silent little prayer of thanks with my hand on the trunk.
At our first stop in the forest, I was amazed at how playful the huge trees made me feel. My daughter and I climbed on them and around them. We marveled at the ferns growing along the paths and remarked on how they reminded us of Dauphin Island but were also so out of context. Bekah described the feel as “wholly familiar and totally foreign.”
I expected to feel awe, wonder and appreciation for the redwoods. I did not expect playfulness. But I suspect you can’t get as big and old as a redwood and take yourself too seriously.
I want to leave you with a few more pictures of the beauty of our trip, but also with a few questions.
Can you think of a moment when beauty brought playfulness?
When was the last time you gasped at the beauty before you?
What place or space in your life right now is wholly familiar and totally foreign?
Book Corner:
What I’ve Been Reading Lately
via library loan:
Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan
This book was a perfect airplane read — for me that means it was easy to get in to and kept my attention. Much of it read like satire to me and most of the characters weren’t very likable. But Eden and Rufus were more down to earth than their surroundings and their presence helped me roll my eyes at the gross wastefulness instead of feel nauseated by it. If you liked Crazy Rich Asians, I don’t think this will disappoint. It’s good fun.
The Worst Ronin by Maggie Tokuda-Hall
This young adult graphic novel about modern day samurai warriors was great. I loved the magical realism elements, the myth vs reality of samurai and the female friendship shown.
via audiobook:
Leslie F*cking Jones by Leslie Jones
This book was a great listen. Jones is obviously hilarious and she’s honest in her memoir. It gets four stars instead of five only because it was so very profane. I would have the F word rattling around in my brain for hours after each listen.
via eBook loan:
A Grave Robbery by Deanna Raybourn
There’s something about the slow burn of falling in love that’s missing for me now that Veronica and Stoker are an item. I’d love to see their chemistry manifest in some new ways.
The Final Curtain by Keigo Higashino
Higashino’s writing is great and this book was no exception. After making my way through the Kaga series, I’m curious to tackle his Detective Galileo books.
Whether the beauty in your life is of the everyday or extraordinary kind, may you savor it and learn from it this week. God speaks in the beauty.
Love,
Shannon
P.S. My friend Aimee recently wrote about one of my favorite books of all time. You can find her piece and her lovely art that accompanies it here. Check it out!
We live south of Portland and took our boys down to the redwoods for their first time last year. I hadn't been since my childhood. It was a fantastic trip. Since you're a reader, you may be interested in The Wild Trees by Richard Preston.
I long to go see the Redwoods! And I love to think of you talking to trees. When I visited California for the first time it felt both familiar and foreign. Some of the Spanish influence in the areas I was in reminded me of St Augustine in Florida near where I grew and so did the relaxed beach culture. But there were new parts like cliffs and mountainous islands and beaches combined, which was very different than the Florida coast.
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