I spent most of the day with my dad and stepmother. We drove up to Sewanee, a little mountain college town in middle Tennessee, and went for a walk in the woods. I carried along a trash bag to pick up some of the ususal college detritus, mostly empty beer cans and broken beer bottles. There were conspicuously three empty bottles of champagne too, so I was left wondering what was being celebrated ... passing comps, maybe.
My ulterior motive was to practice with my new digital camera...I still don't think I'm there, yet.
The walk was through Abbo's Alley, named after a long-deceased English professor. There are usually a plethora of wildflowers, but the severe frost a week or so ago meant that we saw no flowers. Still, it was a warm sunny day and nice to be outside in nature.
Sewanee means a great deal to me because that was where I was as my 19-year old idealistic self. In a sense, it's my
Brokeback Mountain because I compare the me now with the me then - how I am happy with the way some things have turned out and less pleased about others. Whenever I visit, I feel a bit closer to a better version of myself.
Here are a couple of pictures of Abbo's Alley:
Afterwards we drove around a bit to some of the scenic overlooks and I took some pictures of the view of the valley from the mountain. Interesting aside: Students at the university from the local area were referred to as 'Covites' - sometimes derogatory and sometimes in fun. So I guess these would be the coves below the mountains from where I hail:
Then I dragged Dad and Linda over to the Sewanee Natural Bridge, which is also really pretty- good payoff for only a short hike:
Happy Earth Day!
