Wednesday, December 22, 2004

North Gold Verses

As I have served as the pastor for the three churches that comprise the North Gold Circuit (Downieville, North San Juan, Sierra City), it has been my great privilege and pleasure to travel through this beautiful country in which these communities are found. As I have traveled, I have been inspired to compose verses. Here are a few that can serve as riddles -- any guesses as to what each verse describes?

19
The mountains go to sleep at night,
content;
and in the morning, wake,
to discover that,
in whitely silence,
they have been changed.

51
On the winter hillsides
of leafless trees,
one clump of green stand out:
it is Balder's bane.

70
That year:
the boy
had no spring in his step;
and the girl
brought us to a long fall.

73
Standing among the shadows
on the stone-mounted hillside,
people believe
they are walking
in the valley of the shadow.