John and I just returned from a weekend getaway at Devil’s Thumb Ranch in Tabernash. We take a few days every year to escape to this Eco-friendly resort nestled in a valley of the Rockies, with views of the Continental Divide. Even during the off season (the few weeks when warm weather activities are out, the leaves are off the trees, and there is no snow to shepherd in the winter sports) the Rockies tower over you with some mix of magnificence and severity. A friend of mine who lived at the base of Pike’s Peak for many years, once told me that she felt the mountain “knew her.” I find this an apt description. There is something active in these mountains, as if they not only pull us toward them with their force and upheaval, but also gaze down upon us, keeping their tallies.
It is only a few days, an hour and a half drive, but it feels like a big step away from everyday life of work and students, of home and children. I managed to fit in quite a few things from my single stolen day list (I did spare the other guests the baroque arias), while John wrote poetry, of course. Over delicious food and hiking and hot tub soaks, I was able to catch up, really, it cannot be said any other way, with my best friend. “So, how’ve you been?!” We can’t help but look at each other and realize with full clarity why and when and how it all began. And be grateful. For the space to leave it behind, and the joy that we carry when we return.
We receive these few days at the Ranch every year from the owners, whose children are students of John. I am to this day amazed at their generosity–they offer this gift to all the teachers who have loved their children. But, I got to thinking on the drive up that maybe it’s not so generous after all. Relax. Hear me out. It is, of course, deeply generous, but I doubt it makes a noticeable dent in their business. In other words, if we gave this gift to someone else, it would be crippling to our household economy. The owners of Devil’s Thumb, however, have an abundance of a resource that most of us do not. And so a tiny thing to them, becomes a huge thing to us–I venture they have no idea how huge. After a weekend at the Ranch, we take our renewed energy, restored inspiration and quieted hearts back to our everyday lives, and the effects ripple beyond us to our children, our colleagues, our friends and family. All because someone gave a little bit of their extra to another human being, who could not have given it to themselves.
What if we all gave something of our own extra to others? What if we all spent a little less time focused on getting what we don’t have, or being resentful of those who do, and put our abundance, whatever it might be, to work?
I for one, would feel a little more confident about facing those tallies the mountains are keeping.
At the Altar of Family Life 