A Special Place
“When you leave a beautiful place, you carry it with you wherever you go.” Alexandra Stoddard
“When the uniqueness of a place sings to us like a melody, then we will know, at last, what it means to be at home.” Paul Gruchow
Do special places inspire you and bring out the best in you?
This question came home for me this week when we drove the six-hour trip up to our camp and studio in northern Maine. Living as we do in a beautiful area in New Hampshire, we are often asked “why we travel so far north?”. The answer is simple, “because we love it there”.
As a child growing up in New Jersey, I looked forward all year to our once a year trip to a small lake in Wayne, Maine. Those were the days without highways. My mom saved money all year and drove the eleven-hour trip with four kids, three cocker spaniels and a canary in a “woody” station wagon. When asked by incredulous friends “why”, her response was, “we love it there”. It was a gift of time, a freedom to catch frogs, explore woods, build fairy houses, read books and let our imaginations soar in endless “let’s pretend” games. The melody of that place was a soothing song which sustained us each year when back in the reality of school, work and myriad of life’s challenges.
Today our place in Maine is three hours north of there. Situated on large lake bordering Canada, it is a wild place of peace, with endless opportunities to witness the beauty and incredible mysteries of the natural world. When we turn down the dirt road that leads to our camp, I am once again that child, filled with anticipation of the adventures that lay ahead. It is a gift of time, a freedom to explore woods, build fairy houses, read books and let my imagination soar. Time spent there creates a calmness, recharges energy, inspires creativity, and plays a beloved and familiar song, softly in my soul.
