"This is how you do it."
'It' can be anything you can think of (and some things you probably shouldn't think about). From birth to grave we are all inundated with advice on every aspect of how to live. In a positive sense this is what makes us human: the ability to pass knowledge (and dare I say wisdom) on from one generation to the next. It's the reason we have schools, go to church, are awash in Youtube videos and Facebook pop philosophy.
But a book I've just read reminds me of the writers dictum: 'show, don't tell'. The book is John Elder's Reading the Mountains of Home. It's a blueprint showing (not telling) how to have a relationship with a place. Elder is a retired English and Environmental Studies professor from Vermont's Middlebury College. He lives in Bristol, a small village that snugs up against the front range of the Green Mountains. Here the New Haven River has cut an impressive gap thru the Hogback Anticline with the Bristol Cliffs Wilderness Area to the south of town and rugged ledges and a high ridge extending to the north.
Reading the Mountains of Home begins with a poem by Robert Frost. 'Directive' tells of a walk up to the site of a long abandoned settlement. Frost knows this landscape intimately having lived just a few miles south of Bristol in Ripton. John Elder uses Frost's poem as inspiration and guidance for a number of hikes into the mountains. As you might guess, Frost's poem and Elder's book are about much more that a simple walk in the woods. Both men are looking for a deeper connection to where they call home.
The 'This is how you do it' lesson I take away is to first immerse yourself in a place. Walk in all seasons and all weather. Wander while seeing, listening, absorbing the world thru your senses. Let your natural curiosity guide you as your relationship with place develops. Let books, maps and knowledgable people give perspective to your experience. Let study of the natural and cultural history of your home enrich your rambles. And finally, interpret what you have experienced in words or sketches. Keeping a journal organizes and records your thoughts. Go/read/write/repeat.
Few of us will bring the talents of a college English professor to our writing but we can all learn from one. After receiving his Yale Ph.D, John Elder came to Middlebury in 1973 and taught there until his retirement in 2010. In 2008 he was named Vermont professor of the year. He also has a long history of teaching at the Bread Loaf School of English and is the author of a number of books. For an interesting YouTube video of Elder's thoughts about living in Bristol click here.
Bristol...
I haven't been to Bristol in a few years but after reading Elder's book I'm itching to head up that way. I'll share a few thoughts here in case you also want to visit 'The Gateway to the Green Mountains'.
* A good overview of the towns attractions is available here.
* Whenever I climb Camels Hump (my fav mountain!) I usually stop at the Bobcat Cafe for burgers and beer on the way home. Other Bristol options are the Minifactory for breakfast/coffee and The Tillerman (a few miles outside of town) for wood fired pizza.
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